New pullets in the flock

[Valthenya]

Hi! I have three new pullets in my flock. I have 5 big girls all about 6 1/2 months old or so. I introduced them through the fencing for about a week and then in a kennel for a day or two. All went very well. I released them into the run slowly and now my big girls chase and peck them into a corner. When they aren't allowed in the corner they are chased into the coop where they huddle behind the water. It's been 3 days. I've tried to do fun treats and scratch with minimal success. It's starting to get hot where I am and I am worried about the babies being able to access the food and water without too much harassment. Any suggestions on how to help this along? My older girls get lots of love from me, same as the babies, and are very sweet girls normally.

 

[Obsessed With Silkies]

Maybe try free ranging them together if you have the space to do so that way they can be by each other but not necessarily in each others way. Do they sleep in the same coop as the others?

 

[Valthenya]

Maybe try free ranging them together if you have the space to do so that way they can be by each other but not necessarily in each others way. Do they sleep in the same coop as the others?

I can't free range unfortunately. We have a lot of hawks in the area and they would probably end up in my neighbor's yard lol. They do sleep in the same coop. I put the babies on the roost last night and I *think* they slept up there though I am not positive.

 

[Saveria]

Some amount of hazing is unavoidable with chickens, and some breeds/individuals seem more zealous about dolling it out than others, in my experience. They are trying to organize the pecking order right now, which is normal for them, but often looks crazy to us. It should settle down somewhere within an number of weeks. Here are some things I have done in the past to try to make it more smooth transition.

- Installed bars above their dwelling areas, so young ones could jump up and avoid confrontations
- Arranged more space for them during the day when most of the bullying takes place
- Gotten extra feeding areas, sometimes raised up
- Fed some birds in a separate enclosure
- Places boxes and/or wooden crates in the run so young chickens can hide

I have heard of folks do the "look no touch" setup for even longer. That is fine to revert back to if it is easy for you to do, but there will be some hazing behaviors either way.

 

[Saveria]

I can't free range unfortunately. We have a lot of hawks in the area and they would probably end up in my neighbor's yard lol. They do sleep in the same coop. I put the babies on the roost last night and I *think* they slept up there though I am not positive.

We built a covered run, but you could also set up something like these for not much cost. I do not consider these predator proof, but they are hawk proof.

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=covered+run+for+chickens&iax=shopping&ia=shopping

We personally use electronet, lots of places to run for cover, and a giant barred rock rooster to solve that problem ourselves , but you will have to find what works for you.

 

[Valthenya]

We built a covered run, but you could also set up something like these for not much cost. I do not consider these predator proof, but they are hawk proof.

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=covered+run+for+chickens&iax=shopping&ia=shopping

We personally use electronet, lots of places to run for cover, and a giant barred rock rooster to solve that problem ourselves , but you will have to find what works for you.

We do have a nice big covered run for everyone.

 

[Saveria]

We do have a nice big covered run for everyone.

Great. Does the room seem to help at all?

 

[Valthenya]

Great. Does the room seem to help at all?

No. They are chasing them into the corner of the run or into the coop. The run is the like 13x7 ft with the coop on the outside so it doesn't take up inside space.

 

[Saveria]

Mmm, that does sound more intense than I have seen personally. You did a good thing by having a group of three join, then the hazing gets spread out and no one hen gets the full brunt.

I would just go out this afternoon and put some cardboard boxes around in the run so they can jump on them and hide inside of them. Wooden ones are better so they won't slide around on them, but you can use cardboard in a corner till you figure out something better.

When I was having bad hazing, I would actually just stand with the younger ones in the run at mealtime to make sure they were eating and drinking just fine. Hopefully it will mellow down by the time any real heat comes.

I have heard that seeing any blood is the moment where you separate them, but more than that you will have to just wait it out to some extent.

 

[3KillerBs]

Do you have plenty of "clutter" in your run?

Could you show us photos?

A cluttered run​