4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[alih]

I have 2 19 week old chickens who have been with me since Tuesday. They havbeen in the eglu and run whilst my 2 older omlets have free-ranged around them and slept in the rabbit hutch. I have absorbed all the wonderful info on this site but today let them out as a trial to free range together. I have been feeding them treats along the edges of the run and despite the curiosity and odd display, nothing to report. But the minute I let the big ones in they went in particular for Iggy, my black rock. So I have separated them for now. My questions are:

 

are the little ones still too young even to try merging?

Am I being a total wuss about the pecking order thing and should I just bite the bullet and let them get on with it?

How do I know when to try again?

I work in the week and so would like to merge and supervise at weekends....

 

this lack of confidence is uncharactersistic but poor Iggy was so scared adn go tcaught up in the netting and now I am wondering if I have done the right thing...any reassurance and words of wisdom most welcome..and sorry again to be so pathetic!

[Jane 20]

When we got our new girls we put them separate (in half of the eglu run in the big run) for the first week and let them free range together at the weekend. The second week we left the small run open and the new girls spent most of the time sitting on it, out of the way. More free ranging the next weekend then we took the small run away - but put a perch up so there was somewhere for them to go. By the end of the third week they were all OK together apart from the odd scuffle. They did all sleep together from the first night.

 

I was complete coward and wouldn't have taken the mini run away but the OH said they had to sort it out and they were used to one another by then. It is v stressful tho'. Like you I was working so we made the changes on a Saturday so we could supervise on the Sunday.

 

Good luck

[Chickens@61]

not much advice, but sympathy and support from me

 

we got a 'merrydale sweetie' yesterday, and she is currently in our walk in run separated from the other 4 by a mesh panel.. she seems desperate to join the flock, but ginny (merrydale crested) seems intent on trying to fight her through the wire, so goodness knows what would happen if we mixed them

 

i am a complete wimp about pecking order squabbles, and like you i am only around all day at the weekends..

 

so sorry, not much use on the advice front, but sending some cyber support from a fellow 'suffering soul'

 

xx

[Helen&Lee]

I got two new chooks yesterday - a liitle 'spur of the moment'

 

I let my 7 originals out to free range and put the 2 new ones in the run.

Left them for about 3 hours then put the others back in the run.

All was fairly calm, a couple of them went over to check out the newbies, but it was more indignant bok boking than anything else.

 

Bedtime was very slow but eventually all the orignals went in, Bertha still making such a fuss and noise from inside the cube! I went into the run, picked the other two up and put them in the cube and shut the door - which I don't normally do....all went quiet...

 

5.20am and the noise was amazing Dashed down to let them out - but they wouldn't shut up so once again I let the oldies out to free range.

All went well until about 8.30am a HUGE gust of wind freaked out the free rangers.

 

Back they went into the run, and all is generally quieter. They have chased the newbies, they have pecked them, but no feathers have been pulled, no blood drawn -phew! Basically the newbies are in one end and the others at the other end.

 

The run is about 16ftx8ft though, they have 3 lots of food, 3 lots of water in there, if it got bad we could put a divider in to seperate them and I have a spare house, but at the moment I'm going to leave them to it - they have actually been quiet now for about 3 hours so it's looking good.

 

Helen

[alih]

thanks guys - it is a comfort to know am not the only one who finds it all a bit stressful - my husband ( helpfully) whilst watching them this morning said "blimey. it's like cock-fighting", which made me feel worse! I guess slowly is the way to go - may ake advice from someone on a different thread who said "have a large glass, leave it all as it is for a while and stop stressing"....