Miss Moneypenny Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 Hello Everyone, I have recently lost one of my girls and so am really wanting to get another feathered lady to complete my flock of 4. I understand it can be quite difficult to introduce a new hen to a group as she will be pecked about quite a bit. I don't have a large garden but my hens do get out of their eglu and extended run to free range every day so I did think of placing the new hen in the run when she first gets here while the others are out and placing feeding stations outside and in quite close together. I've heard of placing a new hen in the eglu at night to help them to be accepted but does anyone else have any ideas or experience that I could use in this situation? Many thanks, Miss Moneypenny X Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CluckyBucks Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 Hello there I usually put the new girl in the run whilst the others roam the garden a little, so the newby gets used to where the food/water is. Then after an hour or so, i put the others back in the run with the new hen and she will usually get chased and pecked and it seems awful, but it's nature and no blood has ever been shed Eventually, your new hen will discover that the eglu is a safe hiding place (so put 2 small bowls on the roosting bars, one for food and t'other for water) and basically give it a few days and all is usually well A small child's watergun (the type you would get from a christmas cracker) is a useful tool if you believe things are getting a bit out of hand, it will distact the attention of your existing chickens whilst the new one gets away (Obviously don't squirt at the chickens' faces.) Hope this helps, and good luck to you xx xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laurmurf Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 I wouldn't do it like this to be honest. I have never gone for the mixing immediately approach, even at night. Chickens are fiercely territorial and without place to escape to you would be subjecting your new hen to certain bullying, and potential harm. I would advise reading up on all the intro advice on the website. Why not borrow or freecycle a rabbit hutch to keep the newbie in with some netting around it so that they can all see and separately free range together but not do any damage to each other? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 I prefer the slow intro method and always add more than one hen to an existing flock, so that the unwanted attention is diluted. Some advice here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
