greggooo
Happy Chickens!
Has anyone had trouble introducing new hens to their flock? We have our original flock of 6 chickens and decided to add three more hens. We rescued 3 adult hens instead of buying chicks or pullets.
We quarantined them for 30 days, took one to the vet for tests, and then started letting them see each other through a fenced off area in the yard to get used to each other. After almost two weeks, we removed the fence. Not a huge amount of fighting, but the groups are completely isolated. Our original hens and even our rooster won't go near the new ones. They just seem stressed out. One of the new hens will clearly be the top hen, she approaches any other hen near her, and all but the rooster will run from her.
So what do I do? I built a brand new coop, so they all had a new place to live. How do I stick them all in together? The new hens are still sleeping in my dining room!! Is it always this stressful, or is it because I treat the original flock like pets and just feel bad?
We quarantined them for 30 days, took one to the vet for tests, and then started letting them see each other through a fenced off area in the yard to get used to each other. After almost two weeks, we removed the fence. Not a huge amount of fighting, but the groups are completely isolated. Our original hens and even our rooster won't go near the new ones. They just seem stressed out. One of the new hens will clearly be the top hen, she approaches any other hen near her, and all but the rooster will run from her.
So what do I do? I built a brand new coop, so they all had a new place to live. How do I stick them all in together? The new hens are still sleeping in my dining room!! Is it always this stressful, or is it because I treat the original flock like pets and just feel bad?