elizardbreath
In the Brooder
So on Sunday we "borrowed" three hens for the summer. A BSL and Wyandotte were both actively laying before they made the trip to our house, but the Isa brown is a poult and isn't laying yet. They moved into our coop on Saturday night. On Monday morning I found an egg on the floor of the coop, but no other eggs since. We borrowed the girls from good friends, no there are no trust issues with the supplier of the birds.
Since I'm new to chickens I've been watching them closely. They have a 25 square foot, raised coop within a 100 square foot run. Within the coop we have one milk crate nest box, feed, water and two roosts. We also have water out in the run. Since the coop is raised off the ground about two feet, the hens can go under the coop during the part of the day that it gets direct sun - which is only an hour or two. It is mostly shaded. The run is surrounded by chain-link fence.
It seemed like a long time to go without laying so I started researching. I know the move must have been stressful and that could be causing issues, but how long should it take them to adjust?
Also I read that lice and mites can decrease laying, so we checked. The BSL has what appears to be a mild case, the Isa brown had just a few, but the Wyandotte was completely infested! Badly enough to have the whiteish / grayish masses of eggs attached to the bases of a few feathers down by her vent. (Three or four masses about 1/2 the size of a dime.) All three girls were treated with lice / mite powder last night. My husband was a trooper because he helped me do it - despite the fact he thinks I'm completely crazy for wanting chickens for the summer. The night the girls arrived we also treated their legs with oil for mites and their legs feel smooth.
We've been careful with feed and water - checking twice daily. They're also getting treats (corn and meal worms) once a day when the kids and I go into the coop.
Not knowing a lot about chicken behavior, here is what I've noticed:
The BSL, the largest hen in the group, is content to roost for much of the day. She always roosts in the same spot. If I take her down she'll stay down, but the spend most of her time under the coop. She is also completely bare of feathers on part of her bottom half. She is timid, but will eat corn and meal worms out of my hand if I hide behind the corner of the coop. My friend thought her eggs may be green since she has green legs. I can get two fingers between her pubic bones.
They Wyandotte, the middle sized girl, doesn't seem to want to roost. That was why I added the second roost, so there wouldn't be pecking order issues. During the day she often plops down under the coop in the leaves. She was sleeping where I found the egg, so I think it may have been her's - it's brown. The Wyandotte and the BSL seem to get along well. They'll walk next to each other and sit close together under the coop. Last night at dusk when the other two were roosted, she was walking around the coop. I set her up on the other roost to help her settle. It took her about ten minutes of bobbing her head before she sat down and settled for the night. This roost is about four -five feet away from the other roost but at about the same height from the ground. I can get almost two fingers between her bones.
The Isa brown is considerably smaller than the other two. He comb is still pink and she I can only get one finger between her pubic bone. She is very friendly and comes right up to me to see if I brought treats with me when I come into the run. She avoids the other two birds for the most part. At night she roosts on one far end of a roost while the BSL roosts on the other. (Four - five feet apart) During the day I have found her sleeping in the nesting box and under the coop.
I can happily post pictures of our very amateur set-up if you think seeing it may help you analyze our issues. I realize I may be overly concerned - I just don't want to send back sickly chickens in September - or worse not have any to send back!
Does anyone have any ideas / suggestions for me? Thanks!
Since I'm new to chickens I've been watching them closely. They have a 25 square foot, raised coop within a 100 square foot run. Within the coop we have one milk crate nest box, feed, water and two roosts. We also have water out in the run. Since the coop is raised off the ground about two feet, the hens can go under the coop during the part of the day that it gets direct sun - which is only an hour or two. It is mostly shaded. The run is surrounded by chain-link fence.
It seemed like a long time to go without laying so I started researching. I know the move must have been stressful and that could be causing issues, but how long should it take them to adjust?
Also I read that lice and mites can decrease laying, so we checked. The BSL has what appears to be a mild case, the Isa brown had just a few, but the Wyandotte was completely infested! Badly enough to have the whiteish / grayish masses of eggs attached to the bases of a few feathers down by her vent. (Three or four masses about 1/2 the size of a dime.) All three girls were treated with lice / mite powder last night. My husband was a trooper because he helped me do it - despite the fact he thinks I'm completely crazy for wanting chickens for the summer. The night the girls arrived we also treated their legs with oil for mites and their legs feel smooth.
We've been careful with feed and water - checking twice daily. They're also getting treats (corn and meal worms) once a day when the kids and I go into the coop.
Not knowing a lot about chicken behavior, here is what I've noticed:
The BSL, the largest hen in the group, is content to roost for much of the day. She always roosts in the same spot. If I take her down she'll stay down, but the spend most of her time under the coop. She is also completely bare of feathers on part of her bottom half. She is timid, but will eat corn and meal worms out of my hand if I hide behind the corner of the coop. My friend thought her eggs may be green since she has green legs. I can get two fingers between her pubic bones.
They Wyandotte, the middle sized girl, doesn't seem to want to roost. That was why I added the second roost, so there wouldn't be pecking order issues. During the day she often plops down under the coop in the leaves. She was sleeping where I found the egg, so I think it may have been her's - it's brown. The Wyandotte and the BSL seem to get along well. They'll walk next to each other and sit close together under the coop. Last night at dusk when the other two were roosted, she was walking around the coop. I set her up on the other roost to help her settle. It took her about ten minutes of bobbing her head before she sat down and settled for the night. This roost is about four -five feet away from the other roost but at about the same height from the ground. I can get almost two fingers between her bones.
The Isa brown is considerably smaller than the other two. He comb is still pink and she I can only get one finger between her pubic bone. She is very friendly and comes right up to me to see if I brought treats with me when I come into the run. She avoids the other two birds for the most part. At night she roosts on one far end of a roost while the BSL roosts on the other. (Four - five feet apart) During the day I have found her sleeping in the nesting box and under the coop.
I can happily post pictures of our very amateur set-up if you think seeing it may help you analyze our issues. I realize I may be overly concerned - I just don't want to send back sickly chickens in September - or worse not have any to send back!
Does anyone have any ideas / suggestions for me? Thanks!
