Smart Feeder - Light sensor values

[PeteD]

Hello All,

We have just introduced a new chick to our existing run of 3 chickens. She was introduced in the evening into the run.

A couple of days later the chick is completely battered by the other older 3, to such an extent she has a large wound on her neck - all skin has gone.

 

We've not loaned a rabbit hutch for her to live in with her own food & water while she recovers. I've got this next to the run so the other girls can see her.

 

My question is can she be re-introduced to the run once fit again, and how? The older 3 are lovely girls who are used to roaming the garden when we are in. My daughters are desperate for a happy flock of 4!

 

Any advice?

 

Thanks,

Pete

[Redwing]

Introducing one hen is never a good idea as you have found out

 

Let her recover now in her hutch, once recovered put a run on the hutch making sure its still within sight of the others

 

Let the hen stay there for a while, then add one hen in from the original three then later introuce these two back to the other two

 

Any intro has to be done in stages

 

Expect this (including recovery) to take over a month

[Egluntyne]

How old is the 'chick'? If she is younger than point of lay, I would find her a companion of her own age and then introduce them to the others when they are older.

 

Some advice about managing intros **here** and **here**

[staceychristie]

You can't just leave them to it. Did you introduce the new chick without supervision? It only takes a few well aimed pecks to mame or blind a chicken, and if the vent is attacked you'll surely end up with a dead hen.

As Redwing has pointed out 1 new girl is not cool, best to go with 2 at a time, as it difuses some of the presssure.

 

Stacey

[cluckingmad]

Hi Pete,

 

Wondered how the little one was today? Agree with everything said on here, definately get her a companion her own age to keep her company (a single hen is a lonely one I'm afriad).

 

When we introduced our babies to the other hens we did it over a period of several months, once they'd reached the same size as the other girls (they were about 18 weeks old), first allowing them to hear and see each other but in different runs, then we allowed some supervised free-ranging time (always present with a water pistol to squirt any hen getting aggressive). After a few sessions everyone knew their place so aggression diminished to none at all. THEN we split their run in half so the new girls had one side and the older girls had the other, each had separate sleeping accomodation at that point.

 

Over all took us several months to integrate them fully and we had a nasty incident like yours when one of the little ones was almost killed by the big girls - what I will say though is that she made a complete recovery to the vets amazement, was the first of the babies to move into the eglu with the big girls (we let them decide when the time was right to live together!) and is one of the Boss Hens now

 

Takes time but is absolutely worth it - where abouts are you by the way?

 

Carolyn x