Gertie Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Hello all you experts I looked in on my sleeping ex batts the other night and 2 of them were perching on the lip of the nest area. I took the roosting bars out when i got them home first, as recommended for their weak legs, but im taking their perching as a sign they might be ready for the bars back in. This will mean there is a lot less straw in the coop, do you think this will be ok? It's not really cold at night now & they have more feathers to keep them warm. Also, does anyone know how long they need to stay on ex batt food? I would like to integrate them with my other girls in February who eat layers pellets. Can they eat ordinary layers pellets or is it recommended they stay on ex batt food for life? Many thanks xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercedes55 Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 I've no idea what other people do, but our ex batts and pure breeds all have the ex batts layers pellets and seem to get on very well with it. I was under the impression that the ex batts need to stay on the ex batts food as it has more nutrition in it. Our ex batts all sleep in the nest and don't seem to want to use the perches. If yours are on the perches maybe you could just put extra bedding underneath the perches to keep them warm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trougher Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 After I had had my ex-batts for 3 months, I moved them on to layers pellets, although they still get ex-batt crumbs in small amounts as a treat (and they much prefer the crumbs). I haven't noticed any falling off in condition, I think they do fine on normal pellets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 You can either keep your girls on ex batt feed and give that to all your hens (won't do your other girls any harm at all) or you can switch your ex batts onto regular layers pellets. It's whatever suits you really. It sounds like your hens are ready to perch so I'd pop the roosting bars back in. They will be absolutely fine with them. They will also squash up together to keep warm so don't worry too much about stuffing in loads of extra bedding. They're tougher than they look - I promise! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dappy Chick Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 As a general rule if an ex-batt is strong enough to get on a perch then they should be strong enough to jump off. If you put the perches back in let them get on the perch themselves if they want to but I wouldn't put them on them yourself. If you are taking them off ex-batt feed then just make sure the replacement feed is a good quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancing cloud Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Echoing what has been said before, all of mine get the ex-batt pellets and seem to do very well on it and I'm sure they would do equally well on any other decent pellets - whatever suits you will suit your girls. My lot have roosting bars in their cubes and sleep on them or in the nestbox as they please. Sky always sleeps with her head in the nestbox and back end over the bars . In summer they spread themselves out and I leave the door open and in winter the door's closed and they all snuggle up together. I think it helped integrate the Christmas newbies really easily, as the big girls wanted them for hot water bottles . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gertie Posted January 16, 2011 Author Share Posted January 16, 2011 Hi Everyone Thanks for the info. I have cleaned them out and replaced the classic roosting bars. They have already been walking about in there and didnt seem bothered. It's quite mild at the moment so I don't think they will be cold. I have put a lot of straw in the nest which I am sure they will spread about anyway. Very messy creatures Just had a thought. When I integrate them, it will be to a cube. (I am not planning on doing this for another month.) There is the introduction of the ladder then. I have put a log in the classic run for them to practise jumping on and off, they also seem to have no problem getting in and out of the dustbath. What else could I put in the classic run to help them develop their strength? It's not a very high roof so can't be too big/tall. Anyone got any ideas/experience of ex batts and cube ladder? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercedes55 Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Can I just mention that for some reason straw is not advised for use with hens, I can't quite recall the reason, I'm sure someone on here will know. We use Rapport in the nest and under the perches and it's really nice and not very expensive either and you can buy it at any horse shop. We also use it on the floor of the entire WIR and a bale last ages and it's very absorbent too. Our ex batts are in a Cube and quite honestly we found the ladder that came with the Cube to be totally impractical and my OH made one out of wood that they all find much easier to walk up. I can't say I've ever noticed our girls having any problems with their legs, they have all seemed fine and quite able to jump about. Here is a pic of ours going up the ramp which was taken a couple of months after we got our ex batts, so they still look a bit bald Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gertie Posted January 16, 2011 Author Share Posted January 16, 2011 Thanks Mercedes. Lovely pic of your girl using the ramp. I don't have a handy partner ...he is entirely the opposite and breaks anything he touches so I don't want him anywhere near the cube!!! I'm sure I could construct something alternative though if they are not getting along with the ladder. As they are currently at grond level I have never really seen them jump. I'm probably just worrying about nothing as usual! Re straw, I believe that it is because it can appear dry on top but be damp underneath, also possibly can harbour mites/be dusty. I'm currently using it because Easibed on it's own does not look very cosy to sleep on if you have a featherless undercarriage and I thought they needed some padding and something for warmth in that very cold weather we had. I do change it every few days and poo pick, I also clean everything with smite and apply diatom so no worries about the damp or mites at the moment. I have to admit that I would rather not use it as it gets in the way of closing the door and is rapidly filling up the compost bins! Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scarlettohara Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Straw is OK, some people don't use as it can harbour red mite. I use it for ex-batts to keep them warm Hay is not good as it has spores which can be harmful to hens. My ex-batts hate ex-bat crumb and will only eat Garvo mash, even the new ones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercedes55 Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Our ramp is made from a couple of pieces of decking joined together at the back and then some bits of wood screwed on top to help the girls walk up. It took OH about half an hour to make and was very easy and cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gertie Posted January 16, 2011 Author Share Posted January 16, 2011 Thank you. That sounds manageable, even with my rubbish DIY skills & I have plenty of wood available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
