Transitioning to a new home...

[SarahLadd]

Hello everyone,

I bought my first baby chickens back in June, and as the wheel of fate turns, I ended up taking a job offer across states and needed to sell my house. I left my three babies in the hands of a coworker who has six hens herself of the same breed (orpingtons), got an apartment, reconfigured my life and I have just now as of this morning purchased a new home. Closing on the property is Dec 1, so that's the soonest I can retrieve my hens from their temporary home. I have run into some problems, and I would greatly appreciate some advice.

I started with four hens and I now have two. One ended up being a cockerel and I found him a home before we moved away with someone who wanted a rooster, and that's good. But three days ago, I was informed that one of my hens has been killed. She did not inform me directly but rumors are that someone shot my hen in the middle of the night. I'm not sure what to do with my birds... I moved to Minneapolis, MN, and the winters here are going to be very cold. Will I need a heater in my coop? Will they be okay with just each other?

I spent the first four months loving the bejeezees out of these baby birds. I cuddled them, sang to them, whistled, carried them on my shoulders, they followed me in the yard and let me pick them up. They were inquisitive and curious and had personalities that were very deeply individual. But they haven't gotten my attention since I had to give them up after moving here. I have visited as much as I can considering how busy my schedule is and how far away their temporary home is, but they don't recognize me anymore and they won't let me pick them up... they run from me. Is it possible for me to "re-tame" them? Is my dream of having well adjusted, handleable pet hens over because they stopped being loved on?

Closing on the house is going to happen in the dead of winter. The ground will be frozen, and I can't get the fencing around the property until the ground is soft. With a big enough run attached to their coop, will they be okay for the winter? How big of a run should I have to fill this need?

Thank you all.

 

[N F C]

First let me say, I'm so sorry you lost one of your birds, what a horrible thing to have happen. The person keeping them for you should be communicating such news to you herself.

I'm not sure where the birds are now (maybe you said?) but if the weather isn't too different from where they currently are, I would think they'd be ok in MN. Chickens generally handle the cold well as long as there is adequate ventilation in the coop. Maybe it would help to chat with other members in MN to get their input:Minnesota

As for them remembering you, once you have them where you are and spend time with them, I think they'll be fine.

Wishing you all the best and hope the transition to the chicken's new home goes well.

 

[Spartan22]

Orpingtons can handle the cold, since there’s only 2 of them you can probably get away of having them in a coop (December-February, hopefully big enough coop other wise you need an enclosed run (10 sq feet min.per hen, hopefully you’ll build bigger in case you want to add more. Yes, you can retamed your hens with treats and rehandling properly since they were probably been bullied or harassed by other chickens on their temporary home, they were terrified and became cautious. If you must, insulate the coop but don’t use heaters that can cause coop fire , very common mistakes by chicken keepers in the middle of the winter, now you probably need a heated waterer to keep them hydrated thru the winter. Best of luck with the new home.

 

[SarahLadd]

First let me say, I'm so sorry you lost one of your birds, what a horrible thing to have happen. The person keeping them for you should be communicating such news to you herself.

I'm not sure where the birds are now (maybe you said?) but if the weather isn't too different from where they currently are, I would think they'd be ok in MN. Chickens generally handle the cold well as long as there is adequate ventilation in the coop. Maybe it would help to chat with other members in MN to get their input:Minnesota

As for them remembering you, once you have them where you are and spend time with them, I think they'll be fine.

Wishing you all the best and hope the transition to the chicken's new home goes well.

Thank you for the response. They are currently housed in Minnetonka, so they are not far, about 20 miles from the house we just bought.

I should clarify, she told me one of my hens died... she didn't say how. She is in a neighborhood with an HoA that has a forum, and one of my other coworkers informed me that she posted to their neighborhood forum asking if anyone heard gunshots in the night, because one of the chickens on her property was killed; to which people replied that they did indeed hear shots. One of my buff orpingtons was the victim and as of right now, no other birds have been killed.

Thank you for your input on their behavior... It's good to hear there is hope yet!

 

[lazy gardener]

I think only you can make the decision about bringing your 2 remaining birds to your new home. They have adjusted to their new flock, so they are content. They are getting appropriate care there, though not the "loving" that you would like to lavish on them. A move would be stressful for them. IMO, there is no right or wrong answer here. You are not being neglectful if you choose to leave them where they are and start over with a new clutch of chicks in the spring. Nor are you being selfish if you choose to bring them home after your home closing.

Either way, congrats on your new home.

 

[SarahLadd]

I don't think my coworker wants to keep my chickens. She has her own six pet hens and while they're being well cared for, I don't think she wants to have more. I have to take them back from her... Though if I lose another of my hens and I'm down to one, I will open up the discussion about keeping the last one I have, because I obviously cannot have just one hen by herself over the winter and it wouldn't make sense to get more friends for her over the winter.

 

[aart]

Big question is.....will you have adequate housing ready for them?
A heater is not a good idea for several reasons.
They need to be dry and out of the wind with good ventilation in the coop.

You will have to make sure they have liquid water available all their waking hours.
That's really the only place any kind of heat should be utilized.
Or you can just swap out waterers as often as is necessary depending on the weather.