[Abacus]

I'm going to add a few more hens to my flock and have a few questions?

I understand about keeping them separate from the locals till they get used to each other but what about accommodations? Is it okay to get them used to a separate hen house or would it be better to have them use the same house as the locals?

[bantam novice]

Hello Abacus,

I think you need to quarentine them for two weeks before you let them come into contact with each other.  This is in case your newbies have any bugs that could be passed on to the locals.   I would say you need a separate coop and run but in sight of the locals so that they can get used to seeing each other. 

After about two weeks, if they seem healthy, you can introduce them by putting them onto the perches of the local's coop at night when they are all sleepy. 

You will probably still get some squabbling over pecking order for a few days and it can get nasty so keep some purple spray (gentian violet) handy to hide any red blooming patches.

Good luck 

[Jeanette]

You will need to keep them in a seperate coup and run for at least 2 weeks. When you do put them together they will still fight over food ect. Have extra feeders and drinkers dotted around so that the new ones will be able to get to the food and water. Also have plenty of hiding places for them i use buckets turned on its side so that the new girls can escape into. Once you have put them together it is very tempting to split them up again when they are fighting but let them sort it out themselves. As said from the other post have purple spay to hand to cover any redness or bleeding where one has been pecked.