WE FINALLY GOT CHICKENS.......YOWZAAA

[bobhoke]

I need a chicken farm friend to show us the ropes so we know what we are looking for in the sense of healthy chickens when buying.....BUT drum roll please - As of 5p.m. we have our first six CHICKENS

3 buffs, 2 cochins and one mix (hybrid) of the two - nice. One problem though. Two are slightl younger pullets than the adult chickens and they are getting picked on (bad). This is their first night at our coop. We are really happy!!!

We wonder how long we must keep them penned up before they realize they live here so we can let them out every day. We are thinking 2-3 weeks maybe a month - who knows.

Any suggestions or insight to get them to stay home now would be appreciated. They will be egg layers. We already named two (Susie and Marilyn (Monroe)) and the kids love's. Daven named Marilyn because he thinks she is so pretty. We got so lucky!!!

 

[CHICKLOVER69]

I got mine six weeks ago and put them in the coop/run 3 days ago. Made a mistake and put them from the brooder to the run, Come dark they stayed outside in the run. Next day I put a light in the coop. Come dark, they stayed in the run. Put them all in the coop and then they stayed there for 2 days. My son got them out of the coop and come dark, they stayed in the run. Jeesh. I'm working nights so I couldnt put them in for the night and my wife and son couldnt catch them. They didnt try and run from me. I just talked softly to them and slowly picked each one up and put them in the coop. Guess they love me more. LOL. You'll find all your answers here for sure. Only advice I can share is research and a lot of love. Sounds like you have the love part down already. Congrats on your flock

 

[N F C]

Good morning and welcome to BYC! Congratulations on getting your birds.

You've come to the right place to find chicken friends and information. Here's a link to an article from the Learning Center on understanding the pecking order:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/a-guide-to-understanding-the-chicken-pecking-order

There are a lot of very informative articles under the Learning Center tab, check them out!