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

[cluckingmad]

This I had to share... my long suffering OH, Jono, and I were attempting to bumper bit all 6 of our big girls today, before letting them free range with the littlies for the first time.

 

Yes, well......

 

We got 3 of the chooks done, before the OH couldn't take it anymore..."I feel awful!!" he cried, "can't do this to them, they're going mad!!".... this because the three girls in question were really going for the bits, desparately trying to get them off.... but that wasn't the last straw. That came when Molly removed her THIRD bumper bit in record time (about 2 seconds)!

 

We gave up at that point

 

 

So all 10 girls have been out free ranging together today - the occasional peck and chase occured, no damage done to anyone, and by the end of about 2 hrs of us supervising (plant sprayer in hand) there were no more squabbles. The little ones kept together, the bitg girls kept together, reasonably close to each other but not fully mingling

 

All now tucked up in bed, tomorrow the babies go into the sectioned off half of the WIR, fingers crossed all goes well adn the other girls aren't too put out by the newbies

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Oh dear, I'm not looking forward to fitting a bumper bit to Maisie now .

 

Glad you had some successful freeranging today . I've found the only problems occur when the little ones can't escape (like today in the nestbox when Maisie ripped a bit of Poppy's comb off .) So egg laying time seems to be the danger zone .

[cluckingmad]

ooo, poor Poppy Lots of cuddles needed there, methinks...

 

Am hoping things should quieten down by the time the new ones start laying... theyr'e only 15 weeks and apparently we shouldn't expect any eggs till at least 20-24 weeks old, so plenty of time to settle in...

[Snowy]

Hope that peace reigns now! Pepper refused to eat when I put a bumber bit on her, so I took it off and tried her with a beak ring. She got that off after 2 seconds as well!

[laurmurf]

the bumper bit came off with a quick swipe of a toe. The beak ring was brilliant, the girl couldn't get it off herself at all.... one of the others did it for her

[cluckingmad]

soooo glad its not just me then!