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

[redfrock]

A friends father has apparently had a chicken living in his garden for the last four weeks. He was feeding it but that was about it (although he was terribly attached to it). He has no idea where it came from and "Ooops, word censored!"ody claimed it. He left for the US today (he is over there an awful lot for business) and I got a phone call on Thursday afternoon asking for help!

 

Last night we went over and caught said chook and she is now safely ensconced in a hurriedly purchased eglu. She is an absolute stunner, although in the middle of a moult (photos to follow). There is the outside chance he may want her back but to be honest I am trying to dissuade him, although if he does, at least she will have a super home to live in, and I will visit to check she is being looked after etc, but as I say, that is highly unlikely (and if he does I have also said she has to live with at least one other).

 

So ... how to integrate? I have been through 3 lots of introductions over the last 18 months. so am fairly clued up, but obviously this is slightly different. I have checked with Ben and he has some chooks at the moment so I was going to pop by on Thursday, when he is next free, and pick up another, thinking that it may be easiest to integrate two into 10 rather than 1. So this means hoping that the new one and Cough (CoF) will instantly hit it off and live in the eglu while the other chooks all get used to them and vice versa. Or do I get another 2 or do I just hope that all will be hunky-dory trying to introduce 1 into the 10, bearing in mind that one of my girls is a rotten bully.....

 

My head is spinning, please help! Normally I have bought 3 or 4 at the same time and integrated them, rather than finding myself with a stray and had to give it ago.

[Egluntyne]

I've introduced one to eleven, and it wasn't significantly different to the other intros.

 

I just took a little longer about it and at first let her free range with them only when I was there to sort them out with a broom if anything untoward happened.

 

Best of luck.

[WitchHazel]

No advice to offe4r, just wanted to say "How Lovely!" and "Good Luck".

 

Looking forward to piccies

[Mrs Frugal]

Coffee integrated herself . We had the spare Eglu in the big run for her to live in while the others had the Cube and we had a barrier between them made from netting stapled on to a wooden frame to keep them apart. However, after one day where she and Jenny fought through the netting, things settled down and the next day, I found her in with them having jumped over the top!

 

Egluntine's suggestion of taking it slowly and intervening if necessary is very sensible. Make sure they can all see each other and hopefully once they start free ranging together, they'll get on OK after any initial pecking order s"Ooops, word censored!"s. If things turn nasty, you've got the accommodation to separate Cough if necessary until it calms down again.

 

Good luck!! I love these little chickens of fate .

[HENthusiastic]

Fantastic name. I want a ginger chicken of fate!