battery hens

hi we got 5 ex batt chickens yesturday they dont seam to be in to bad  condition. me and the wife went into the batt farm to get the chickens with the farmer, and it was so sad to see the conditons that they live in, iam so happy to give them better living condtion. a couple have very long claws. can anyone help as how to trim them and with what.

Well done, i picked up three ex-bat hens on Sunday a week ago. I had three eggs on the Monday morning, two on the Tuesday but none since, most peeps think it might be due to stress and i have a really nasty chicken out of the three that picks on the other two really badly. Did you have any problems with yours? Any suggestions on how to stop the bullying?

They have to sort out the new pecking order, mine took about a week, and then it all calmed down.

If you do have a particular bully, try picking her up and walking round with her for a short while.  I read about it somewhere, and tried it with Tilly, and it seemed to calm her down a bit.

If you have a particular 'victim', could try spraying with Featherite which tastes nasty and will deter.  And watch out for any wounding, need pruple spray for that.

But don't worry, they'll sort themselves out and everyone will end up properly ranked. 

I got 8 ex batts just over a year ago.  Still have 7 who are enjoying a healthy and happy retirement.