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

[jam]

Hi

I have 3 hens, a black Brahma a light sussex and a cuckoo maran. When Buying my hens I had my heart set on a buff orpington, unfortunatly the breeder i went to didnt have any at the time. Now he does and I want to get one asap. One question. My hens are 2 and a half months old. If I introduce a new hen will they all fight? I know they will have to re-establish the pecking order, but will it be worse than normal?

Jam

[Redwing]

Do you know how old the orp will be when you get it?

[jam]

About 7 weeks

[Redwing]

Its very tricky to introdce just one hen. its age means it will need to be kept separate for a while but in view of the others while they adjust to it.

[Egluntyne]

Please don't add a 7 week chick to older hens and an established group at that.

 

It is a recipe for disaster. Several Omleteers have come a cropper and have had chicks killed.

 

Have a look at the following articles from the FAQ section for advice.

 

**Click**

 

and

 

**Click**

[Cooks]

I bought two orps recently at the age of 12 weeks and they are still living seperately.. like Egluntine says please dont add a 7 week old to the flock it would be very dangerous. As you probably know with Orps they are very slow to mature so I was prepared for them to stay sperate (but living aside each other) for a while.

Also consider that Orps grow rather large and asses whether you have the space to add one.

[jam]

ok, how old should the orpington be??

[Janty]

I got some chicks at fourteen weeks old. I kept them separate until they were 18 weeks old. I then kept them in a cube and run in the walk in run so that the other girls could see them and be with them for another three weeks before letting them out together. This worked a dream and there were only a few squabbles and nothing serious at all.

[Cooks]

orps are slow to mature so whereas other hens are ok for 18/19 weeks (my orps age at moment) I would say a little older for a single orp to go with older girls IMO, mine are still baby like and they are big balls of feathers!, they are not ready to go with the older girls yet.

They are living separately alongside and free range with the older girls supervised by me with trusty broom in my hand to wade in if necessary. However seeing how they are I am taking things very slow and am not rushing to integrate... there's no rush at all

 

whatever age you get them they will need separate accommodation to live in so it is best for you to organise this ahead of time so your not rushed.

 

edited for spelling mistakes

[jam]

ill have to find an older orp if i can, along with some other chickens. I can see your point about only introducing one hen. its a good thing a have a big spare 2 story rabbit hutch with a run that i coud use to house them seperately for a while.

thanks peeps

[Cooks]

where are you located in the country? people on here know all different chicken breeders with all different stock so it's worth checking with us..