[terri]

after much scrubbing and hoesing of the coop and hamering back together of the run ,finding a good spot in my garden etc
im tired hungry and ready to get my hens tomorrow.
but do i need to put trays or baskets in the nesting box bit for them to sit in
and do i put wood shavings in them and the rest of the coop as well or something else,how do you set up your coop
do you line with newspaper and put shavings on top like i do for my g-pigs
iv fixed the run onto the coop so they have a designated patch ,allthough when im not working they will be able to have the run of the whole garden but have allready planned to buid a walk in run for them as iv seen some great ideas on here
what can i do to make theire move in to the new home as stresless as possible i will be picking them up tomorow afternoon
thankyou  for all the advice so far terri

[PaulineM]

Hi
Sounds like your all set to go. 
I use 'all bed' for the bedding, it is wood chips.  I put a thick layer of it on the floor of the coop and then pick the poo up everyday by hand (latex gloved hand)
You don't need anything else in the nestbox other than the bedding you choose, again I am currently using all bed mixed in with shavings. I found the shavings I was using were dusty.
You must be soooo excited at the moment, good luck and don't forget we love to see photo's of the ne arrivals. 

[bantam novice]

Good luck Terri and, as Pauline said, don't forget the pics 

[Lindeggs]

after much scrubbing and hoesing of the coop and hamering back together of the run ,finding a good spot in my garden etc
im tired hungry and ready to get my hens tomorrow.
but do i need to put trays or baskets in the nesting box bit for them to sit in

How old are the hens you're getting?  If they are already laying, yes they will need a nesting box.  Just put some soft bedding in there, and they will rearrange it to suit themselves.  If the nesting box already has a lip on the front to stop bedding being kicked out, that will be fine.  If not you will need something like a tray or basket to put the bedding in.

and do i put wood shavings in them and the rest of the coop as well or something else,how do you set up your coop
do you line with newspaper and put shavings on top like i do for my g-pigs

Yes, whatever you do for the guinea-pigs should work for the hens.  Just use the same system to start,a nd you might refine it later once you know what works for you.

iv fixed the run onto the coop so they have a designated patch ,allthough when im not working they will be able to have the run of the whole garden but have allready planned to buid a walk in run for them as iv seen some great ideas on here
what can i do to make theire move in to the new home as stresless as possible i will be picking them up tomorow afternoon
thankyou  for all the advice so far terri

Sounds like you've got it all sorted out.  As long as your run is secure enough that they can't get out, just pop them in there and have fun watching them!  Keep them in the run for a few days until you're sure they know where 'home' is.

Enjoy your new hens!

[terri]

thanks  evryone going to get them now x

[JaK]

How has it been? Have they settled in well? I bet you can't draw yourself away from then. 

[terri]

they are here i ended up with 3 a black rock,bluebell and a warren all 9 months old that we have rather uncreativly called bluebell rocky and warren
im having trouble adding pics but they seemed very happy when i put them in their new home just the bluebell hiding inside the coop the other 2 were out digging up the soil in the run right away so i let them out into the whole garden and all 3 were very funny they done all my weeding too and ill never have to worry about slugs again yay
but when i put them back in the coop to bed i shut the door and thought id just have a little peep in through the roof and to my surprise i saw an egg ,couldnt belive it .had to dash over the road to show my freind and neighbours they must think im mad ,then my oh prompley fried it and my little girl loved that it had come from her hen and eat it all ,first time ever,
that must be why bluebell stayed in their at first i thought it would be a while before i got one
the man i got them off said hed had them for a few weeks off his brother who said they were laying but had not done so while he had them
clever girl love them allready x

[PaulineM]

Well done 
Don't be surprised if you don't get another egg from that hen for a few days or weeks, it was in her system when you got her but she might be put off by the change in her environment, but if this happens at least you know she has it in her. 

[terri]

got another 2 today :happy: