unlucky or bad breeder?

[Numero182]

Hi all,

It's been a while but finally have cause to post again.

We got our first chickens just over a year ago, 4 hens (pullets) and a cockerel, all from the local breeder in town who has a seemingly very good setup, impeccably clean etc and also rears other birds but his mainstay is chickens.

Anyway, within a month of having these first hens one died after becoming egg bound, so I hit this forum and seems it happens so just a case of bad luck.

October just passed we decided to increase our number of hens by 3, we had the space and we figured our cockerel had the capacity so went and got another three from the same guy.

Put the three new hens into a separate fenced off area and next morning noticed one was limping...long story short eventually the older hens pecked her to within an inch of her life as soon as we tried introducing the three new ones, I feel terrible about this as a disaster at the house with our water supply meant I couldn't keep a close enough on what they were up to and had to intervene and dispatch her.

After this the rest of the hens seemed to coexist rather well! Happy days! Except yesterday we noticed another of the new hens limping and she is the same again today so will put her into the separate enclosure to avoid a repeat of last time but are we just really unlucky or is this breeder a bit suspect?

Thanks in advance.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

To me, it doesn't sound like anything to do with the breeder. Have you examined the foot to try to figure out why they start limping to begin with?

Once a bird is ill or injured, some others will take it upon themselves to dispatch the weakling for the good of the flock. So, your pecking hen may be causing the limp, or she may be reacting to their weakness. In any case, the first step is to try to figure out why they suddenly come up injured, and go from there.

 

[Numero182]

Examining the foot has proved impossible, i just can't catch her!! I have never been able to get near to any of our chickens, I don't know why they are so nervous.

The lame hen is still not using her injured leg/foot but the others haven't yet resorted to dispatching her so let's hope it stays this way.

Thanks for your reply.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

The best time to catch them (IME) is at night once they are up on the roost.

It could be a coincidence that two came up limping so close together. I'd make sure there isn't anything they are landing on when they hop off the roost, or something laying around that perhaps they've stepped on and injured themselves.

 

[Numero182]

Well i am glad to here that it's not the breeder as I don't know anywhere else to buy from.

It's pouring with rain here now for the next week so will go and investigate when I get the opportunity.

Thanks again sunhwakwon!