This may belong in the 'behaviors' forum, but maybe not. ps. This is kinda long, but I am probably way over the top about this...looking for advice. Thanks.
I got 4 new hens (2 EEs and 2 BOs) to add to my 3 hens and a roo. They ended up being smaller than the others and therefore easiler to pick on. One EE in particular (Esther), the smallest, is very timid.
this morning I opened up the (relatively small) coop and out come my original 4 and as has been the case the other 4 stay in the coop for a little while. Then a little while later when I go to check on the new guys I find that my Roo and one of my hens is up on the roost with 1 EE below and one in the nesting boxes.
So I decided to scurry the Roo and hen out... actually mostly the roo. He's never in the coop during the day.
Anyway out goes the roo, hen and one of the EE's.
The problem is that the other EE, Esther, continues to stay in the nesting box. Yes, she could be laying, but she's the most timid and I'm worried that something could be wrong with her. I went in to look and she's not got any signs of pecking abuse i.e. no blood.
What are the signs to look for in case their is disease, injury? Can you direct me to a list of what to look for first, etc.?
ps. The new hens are all sitting outside the coop waiting for her before they go foraging. And I don't want to bother them too much as they are very scared and appear to be unused to handling.
Appreciate your help.
I got 4 new hens (2 EEs and 2 BOs) to add to my 3 hens and a roo. They ended up being smaller than the others and therefore easiler to pick on. One EE in particular (Esther), the smallest, is very timid.
this morning I opened up the (relatively small) coop and out come my original 4 and as has been the case the other 4 stay in the coop for a little while. Then a little while later when I go to check on the new guys I find that my Roo and one of my hens is up on the roost with 1 EE below and one in the nesting boxes.
So I decided to scurry the Roo and hen out... actually mostly the roo. He's never in the coop during the day.
Anyway out goes the roo, hen and one of the EE's.
The problem is that the other EE, Esther, continues to stay in the nesting box. Yes, she could be laying, but she's the most timid and I'm worried that something could be wrong with her. I went in to look and she's not got any signs of pecking abuse i.e. no blood.
What are the signs to look for in case their is disease, injury? Can you direct me to a list of what to look for first, etc.?
ps. The new hens are all sitting outside the coop waiting for her before they go foraging. And I don't want to bother them too much as they are very scared and appear to be unused to handling.
Appreciate your help.
