braden01 Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Having lost our 2 Omlet chucks to the fox last week after 2 happy years, we have just been told that there is a rescue on 22nd so we're adopting 3 ex-bats. Not having had ex-bats before, I wondered if anyone else has any advice? They will be our only chucks so we don't need to worry about introducing them to any existing residents. Also, has anyone else found them to be good 'layers'? We loved having our own eggs and I am assuming that our new girls should continue to lay for quite a while to come but not sure what to expect. Any wisdom would be most welcome to help them settle in quickly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombull10 Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 I've had mine for almost 48 hours and have already had 5 delicious eggs!! They r a bit threadbare so have had lots of warm bedding in the eglu until their feathers grow back. 2 are fighting a bit but this is apparantly quite normal for first few days!! I'll keep you posted with my progress and try to offer some advice. They are my first ever chickens so I'm sure I'll learn lots in the next few weeks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy chickens! Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Good luck with them, I've found them to be very rewarding, hope you do too. I got my first egg in the car on the way home!! Egg production has tailed off for now. I have 2 girls who lay most days, the other 4 have been growing feathers back like mad. Combs are starting to go pink, so hope they will start up again soon. My 2 layers, from having the most feathers now look scruffy in comparison to the newly feathered girls! From not knowing what to do with the space around them, they happily behave like 'real'chickens now. They're fab!! Give them lots of feeding stations to avoid pecking, start them on mash as that's what they're used to and gradually introduce other foods and enyoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livvyshens Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 I didn't realise they were supposed to get mash at first and started them off on Allen and Page's pellets. When after 2 days I realised my mistake and bought them mash they tried it but then spurned it (and I tried serving it in several different consistencies). They do like porridge although that had to be introduced decorated with grapes. I don't think I've got any advice apart from patience - mine took from Saturday p.m. to Monday p.m. to come out of the coop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 I agree - lots of feeding stations. They fight a lot. Other than that they are ace! Mine much prefered pellets to mash almost from the start. It took about 1 month for the feathers to grow back. Once this was done they were all laying daily. Now they are very cheeky happy chickens and seem ok even in this very cold weather (when they were bald I worried as they were shivery) The only thing is 2 if them are quite skinny so I am going to try them on the special allen and page ex-batt feed. as apparently this helps improve their condition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
