mullethunter Posted October 26, 2014 Share Posted October 26, 2014 (edited) As many of you may know, getting my four girls to live as a single flock was not a particularly quick or easy process. However now my two year old Wyandotte bantams and 7 months old Pekins get on reasonably well, although there is a definite pecking order which Amy rigorously enforces. It goes 1. Penny 2. Amy 3. Bernadette 4. Shelley. However, although they do all now share the perch in the Eglu, bedtime is always a bit fraught. The Pekins would like to go to bed first, but if they ever do Amy will go in and kick them out. So the Pekins have to wait. First both Wyandottes go in and out and run around the Eglu run looking really perturbed for ten minutes or so. Then Penny will go in and usually stay in. The Amy will go in and out and run around a few times before going in and staying in. Then after a minute or so Shelley sneaks to the Eglu, only for Amy to come out and chase her away. This will happen three or four times. Then eventually after waiting for Amy to stay in for a few minutes, Bernadette will quietly sneak in, to be followed by Shelley. Things then quieten down very quickly, and when I go out to shut the door they're all snuggled onto the perch together (usually but not always in the same order). Is this just normal pecking order behaviour and does anyone else have similar antics? Edited October 28, 2014 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloud Posted October 26, 2014 Share Posted October 26, 2014 We forced our new girls in with the oldie just a few weeks ago and this sounds familiar. On their own the new girls went to be an hour before the old girls, but Coco used to evict them for the first week and they had to go in last. Now we seem to have a better equilibrium, but there clearly a reshuffle when Coco goes in, but they are now all on the perch together - but not always in the same order. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjp Posted October 26, 2014 Share Posted October 26, 2014 sounds perfectly normal to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beantree Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 We have four TNN sisters nearly two years old now who still fight over perch position in the evening. When it gets particularly bad one hides in the nest box. Last night there were two in the nest boxes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miller30 Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 Yep sounds normal to me im always shouting at my lot just for once can you go to bed without the mucking around well when you listen to over 100 birds squabbling and about 60 of those are pekins it does grate on your nerves in the end I just try and ignore them while im cleaning up but it is like a bunch of toddlers leanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 Depending on who has settled in the doorway we get bokking really loudly either by Tipsy the maran or Skye the pekin. It's usually the orpie's big bottom in the way. Sometimes Tipsy gets really cheesed off and barges through when I've gone to see what the racket is all about. Skye just summons up courage eventually and flaps over the top dodging the orpie pecking her. With no particular head girl and a couple of wannabes it is a bit more of a shambles. When the lovely Apache (ooooh matron) was in charge and Sioux, the second in command, there wasn't any trouble at all that I remember. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted October 27, 2014 Author Share Posted October 27, 2014 Phew - not just mine then Watching them doing it right now - Amy turns into a proper ratbag at bedtime! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 Well this evening I went to close them up for the night and perhaps in hindsight I should have gone straight for the door, but closed the run door first instead. Out comes Skye chatting away so I opened it up and picked her up. Went to put her in via the back (forgetting to close the cube door before doing so) - out popped Pippin and Tipsy. By this time Skye was doing her parrot impersonation and I managed to get her in the cube and the go round to the run door, laying a tarpaulin over the top to cut out light. Pippin decided to go back inside and Tipsy grumbled a bit and followed her in. All this shortly followed by a grumpy orpie and a whingeing pekin - how dare they go out and expect their place in the roosting bars to be vacant when they come back inside!!! And then peace at last! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plum Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Yup agree it sounds normal. Used to upset me so I don't stay and watch now. They settle down in the end fine. It's my little wyandotte who chases the other bantams out until one of the big girls go to bed and sorts her out. We need a cockerel Why is it Pekins whinge Valkerie mine sounds a right old crow/Guinee pig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjp Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Yup agree it sounds normal. Used to upset me so I don't stay and watch now. They settle down in the end fine. It's my little wyandotte who chases the other bantams out until one of the big girls go to bed and sorts her out. We need a cockerel their no help they just go and hide until they girls have stopped all the squabbling. well mine do at any rate Why is it Pekins whinge Valkerie mine sounds a right old crow/Guinee pig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted October 28, 2014 Author Share Posted October 28, 2014 I don't stay and watch now. I'm beginning to think this is the only way to believe they're all happy all the time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plum Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Yup pretend they don't do it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 Yup Plum - mine is more eh eh ehhhhhhhhhhh? and then it gets louder EH EH EHHHHHHHHHHHH? If nothing happens before then it's bok bok bok! So yes, do pretend and perhaps put ear plugs on the shopping list! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pottage Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 My Facebook status from back in September! **** Why does bedtime have to be such a drama? In and out like yo-yos, trying to settle perched at the bedroom door so no one else can get past, screaming & fighting over the best spot, then one finally settles and another decides it wants that spot and all hell breaks loose. Just go to sleep stupid birds!!! **** They are still the same, if not worse at the moment. Nugget has had an implant induced moult and can't/won't fly off the little wall down to their coop anymore. We have to go and pick her up every night and put her to bed, which would be fine but she gets REALLY annoyed if anyone else tries to go to bed before her. If there is anyone in the coop when she gets there they get a very hard peck on the head. I know how hard the peck is because my poor hand has been the unintentional victim several times recently Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat tails Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 I think I might be rather lucky... Not a pip or a squeak when they go to bed. And all go in together and snuggle together. Waking up is al whole different story though... Soft squawks and squeaks is what it starts with and a lot of stumbling around the dark in the coop. If I don't hurry up it will progress to a lot of little screeches and an occasional "bokbokbok". When finally out, the stupid little madams complain that it's too dark and start whining for their breakfast (hand of corn) and their post breakfast (hand of lettuce or any other green veg from my fridge). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeshen Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 It's got even more complicated since having two coops. (Much more than double the trouble!) My 2 lots of 5 have only been free-ranging together for 4 days, but even so, I hadn't bargained on such grisly bedtime hassle. This evening Mr Darcy and wives were encamped in the youngsters' run and wouldn't budge. The youngsters had to wait in fear and trembling until he condescended to move. Shirley, number 4 wife, decided she was fed up with being bottom of the pile in that group and had ambitions to be top hen to the youngsters. She jumped into the youngsters coup and started terrorising them. I managed to chuck her out, but in the process, half the youngsters fell out too... Am just about to have a glass of wine... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted October 29, 2014 Author Share Posted October 29, 2014 Good job we love 'em! Mine actually had their simplest night ever tonight. Bernie and Shelley first, then Penny, then Amy stormed about for a couple of minutes before huffily realising there was no one to terrorise so she turned in too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted October 30, 2014 Share Posted October 30, 2014 Am just about to have a glass of wine... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjp Posted October 30, 2014 Share Posted October 30, 2014 both the 2 POL 's took themselves to bed yesterday for the first time since they got put in with the main group 6 weeks ago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeshen Posted October 30, 2014 Share Posted October 30, 2014 Hooray sjp! We were out all day today and got back at 5ish, when it was already dusk. Was dreading finding evidence of murder and mayhem, but no. All 10 of them were quietly settled in their own coops, no problem! I think from now on I'm just going to leave them to sort their bedtime arguments out among themselves and just go out later to shut them in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted October 30, 2014 Author Share Posted October 30, 2014 Works for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjp Posted October 30, 2014 Share Posted October 30, 2014 it's the best way for them but not necessarily for us I try not to intervene in pecking order squabbles or fights unless they are getting a regular thing between the same birds then I try to pick the instigator up or at least run them around the garden a couple of times the threat of been picked up is enough for most of my lot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted October 31, 2014 Share Posted October 31, 2014 It's usually fine here - just get the odd squabbles now and again. We did get yelling a while back and it was a hedgehog bustling around and they were quite happy to stand and yell at it until I took him away and deposited him up the garden and then they went to bed as good as gold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
