Unhappy Hens

[Carmel at Kovar]

We moved our three Easter egger hens to our new home about six weeks ago, and they are very unhappy still. We were living in the city, where we had a larger than average backyard in which our hens free-ranged from morning until night, when they went into their small coop inside a fenced, electric wire-protected hen yard for the night. Our backyard had many trees, several gardens, and much vegetation. Our hens were protected from predators, heat, and cold when they free-ranged, and I spent much time with them during the day. Now we live on several acres in a rural area that has little vegetation, and very few trees. My husband built a large hoop coop for the girls, and fenced in a large portion of land around the coop for their yard. He put shade cloth over the fence to protect the girls from the harsh sun (we’re in Texas). We can’t let them free-range anymore. Our environment isn’t safe for them at this time. But our hens won’t leave their coop now during the day. They leave it for a few minutes to eat in the mornings, and to drink water. They come out when I call them, but then go back inside. And they have pretty much stopped laying. What can we do to make the girls happier in their new home?

 

[NatJ]

We moved our three Easter egger hens to our new home about six weeks ago, and they are very unhappy still. We were living in the city, where we had a larger than average backyard in which our hens free-ranged from morning until night, when they went into their small coop inside a fenced, electric wire-protected hen yard for the night. Our backyard had many trees, several gardens, and much vegetation. Our hens were protected from predators, heat, and cold when they free-ranged, and I spent much time with them during the day. Now we live on several acres in a rural area that has little vegetation, and very few trees. My husband built a large hoop coop for the girls, and fenced in a large portion of land around the coop for their yard. He put shade cloth over the fence to protect the girls from the harsh sun (we’re in Texas). We can’t let them free-range anymore. Our environment isn’t safe for them at this time. But our hens won’t leave their coop now during the day. They leave it for a few minutes to eat in the mornings, and to drink water. They come out when I call them, but then go back inside. And they have pretty much stopped laying. What can we do to make the girls happier in their new home?

I would expect hens to need some time to adjust to a new home, but six weeks should have been long enough.

If they are used to having a trees and vegetation, but the new place is rather bare, they may feel too exposed. You might try giving them things to break up the emptiness. Possibilities could include straw bales, chairs or sawhorses or tables, tree stumps or logs, even cardboard boxes-- start with what you have handy, and see how the hens respond.

They may also be bored. You could try giving them more options for scratching and foraging. Maybe take a shovel and turn over some of the dirt to make it softer and more intersting, or add some dry leaves or wood chips or straw for them to scratch around in, or put all compostable things in their run (so they can eat some and scratch around the rest), or any combination of similar ideas.

Do predators come near their pen? Hawks flying overhead or foxes sniffing at the fence could scare them enough to stay in the coop. (Or any other predators hanging around. I don't know exactly what you have, so I just picked two possible examples.)

As regards them not laying, that might just be from the time of year. Most hens stop laying and molt in the fall when the days get shorter. The actual time can be any time from late summer (early molters) to midwinter (late molters). Or the stress of moving may have stopped them laying. That is fairly common, but I would have expected 6 weeks to be long enough for them to start laying again, unless there is some other reason (like molting) for them to not start laying again.