What makes a chicken coop easy to live with?

[balti]

Had my silkies a week now, they currently in a separate eglu to my others. I am free ranging them separately at

the moment - and each flock hang around the other cage whilst out, making all sorts of noise - great to watch,

especially Kenny Cock who is already showing how much he loves them through the bars...

Anyway noticed the silkies are alot more timid than my older birds - scared stiff to let them all out together even

though i must this weekend.

I let one of the older birds out with the silkies to test the water and old bird just went for silkies constantly. Poor

Smurf - the most quiet one of them all got a good pecking. She has stayed still and lowered her head. I felt

terrible. My old bird also seeked out the others and went for them too...

I soon returned her to her run and shut the door.

My aim is to keep the cockerel locked up - as he will just cause more chaos for the silkies - and let the other 2 birds out

with the silkies.

I did read a blog on here about keep a broom handy to separate them.....

Any thing else i should know?

Am dreading it....

[sjp]

get a water pistol or plant sprayer a quick blast will make them think. let the new girls out first for a little while then let the older ones out if your cockerel is good natured he shouldn't be a problem he'll only start to get 'friendly' once they are ready to lay if he's anything like my Boris he'll love having the new girls fawning over him he'll be structing his stuff like he's ten foot tall.

there'll be a bit of shouting and pecking from the older girls for a short while, hopefully nothing really bad it's the lower ranking girls I tend to keep a eye on as they have the most to lose the top girls normally have one or two pecks just to let the new ones who's in charge then that's it. as long as no blood is drawn then I'd leave them to it just set a chair up and sit and watch them

[Duncan08]

Are the older girls silkies too? or at least bantams.

 

You may find problems forever integrating little ones with established big ones.

 

 

But I am with sjp on the advice, a comfy chair and a water pistol, a week might be too soon, I had mine in a separate run and coop for a week, then sectioned off the WIR for a further 2 weeks, before popping them to bed together at night, then separating in the day, before finally taking down the separation and letting them all live together.

 

And it was the lowest girl in the existing flock who was the worst at picking on the new ones.

[balti]

No old flock are not silkies but large old birds - and ken cock is a bantam - new silkies are more his height

 

Good idea - will get a water pistol and a bottle of wine.

 

I would ideally like them all to be together in a month or two, but i guess time will tell if thats gonna be possible, there

is no weaker one of the two old birds so my fear is they will both just pick on the weakest of the silkies, she is already

geting grief from her own kind at the moment.

 

I will try this out Sunday - subject to rain - thanks again

[jackian]

My intros took 3 weeks before peace was declared. .. I was ready to cry my eyes out and throw in the towel.I have not got silkies but think the rules are the same... My old girl Poppy , bottom of the pecking order was the worst because she did not want to be bottom any more .she wanted promotion, and won .she is has now been promoted but looks after one of the newbies

[balti]

I can only imagine what you went through.... And i guess my shouting at them doesn't help ! I guess it will

take time, its just the poor silkies look so helpless.

 

Will be a noisy Sunday