Pro - Does anyone else's nest boxes get soaked in rain?

[coco]

I have been doing intros between my three girls and my two ex batts. They have been free ranging together for the last two weeks and apart from the odd peck from the ex batts over food they are getting along fine. The ex batts have been going into the other girls house to sleep the last couple of nights and I have been putting them in thier own house. I'm not sure if I should leave them all to it now and seperate them in the morning. The one thing that worrys me is that I have a broody hen who is sleeping in the nest box, I'm a bit concerned as she is vunerable and won't move even if anyone has a go at her. Hopefully she should stop being broody soon so should I wait till then. Any advice would be appreciated.

[Carol U]

Unless your broody is actually sitting on eggs, I would be inclined to let them sleep together if they want to. I think that they like to all cuddle up now that it's quite cold. Nothing is going to happen in the night, as once it's dark they'll all just sleep.

[Chook n Boo Mum]

Can you move the broody to another nest if she's on eggs or a broody box to break the "spell"? Some hens stay broody for much longer than the regulation 3 weeks if you leave them to it !

 

If the batties have already made the move in with the big girls, I'd stay with that arrangement personally......you say they FR together, but are they in the same run during the work day......I've never done the "move out for the daytime" routine, my batties moved into the WIR on their own during the day and I put their in there for them until they moved into the ..about 2 days if memory serves correctly

 

Good luck with your intros

 

Sha x

[BeckyBoo]

Sounds to me like they've already made their own sleeping arrangements! I'd let them all be together now, there might be a bit of pecking but they have to sort out who is who and once that's done you're all sorted!

 

Happy days

 

BeckyBoo

[Plum]

Agree, I'd go for it now. Voice of experience on first lot of introductions

[sjp]

let them try it for one night to see how they get on

I found with my lot that the daytime went ok I did this before letting the sleep together but it's the going to bed that can be'intressting'. my 2 big girls don't like sharing they're bedroom so for a good ten minutes after they decide it bed time all hell brakes out them as soon as the youngsters go in the nest box or get on the perch and stand there ground it's as if nothing as happend I do move them out of the nest box after about 1hr before that they struggle to much and it no fun trying to catch a legbar in the dark when she knows your limitations