[janiejakemum]

Hi

Forgive the lack of information but i post normally on the grow your own section and am posting this thread on behalf of my dad.

He had 4 hens Rhode Island reds about 10 months old i guess, he wanted to add some hens so went and bought 4 more hens (hybrids) just about laying so 19 weeks old ish, he was advised to put them all in together and let them get on with it.

Obviously there has been a lot of squabbling but nothing too drastic until Saturday night.  He put them all to bed as usual but got up to find one of them had been beaten up to the point the hen was barely alive.  My dad didnt go into detail other than to say he lost it so presumably he put it out of its misery.

Is there anything he can do to allow them to get on better?  I dont know the sizes of run the chickens have but its quite large.

Thanks for any advice

[Roughlee Handled]

I going through the same sort of thing at the moment with my chucks and your dad has done every thing that I have been told do to do.   I dont know what else to suggest.  Sure there will be someone along shortly.

[FCG]

Try seperating them with one line of chicken wire within the run and if possible the same within the coop. This way they can see each other and smell each other therefore they will get used to each other without being able to attack each other. After a few weeks they should be used and the fighting will die down after they are put back together.

[janiejakemum]

Thanky ou for your comments i'll let my dad know later on.

[Roughlee Handled]

A can you report back how the other chucks are doing?

[janiejakemum]

Hi

I saw dad today and he said its not so good,  the older birds are picking on the newer ones still one looks especially picked on, he has taken the descision to move the new ones out so he is going to either separate them within the housing and run at the moment or he is going to convert a greenhouse for them for now.  The older birds dont seem to let up and are more than prepared to peck the newbies to death.  He thinks he will loose the worst affected one but dont know - fingers crossed.

Thanks

[woodburner]

How much space do they have?
While chickens brought up together or bought  all at the same time can get on alright in a relatively small area, when introducing new birds, the more space the better, so the new birds can get away from the established hens.

[janiejakemum]

The short answer is i dont know, i have never visited them but i seem to recall the run being 20 odd foot and the hen house is basically a shed which i think is bigger than 6 x 4 he was also going to add onto the run the greenhouse in the autumn but i think now he'll separate them using it.

When i helped him do his research before getting the hens he worked on the basis of them having more than the recommended amount of space.

[Oliveview]

We had no trouble introducing the first lot of new hens then we got a cockerel and when we introduced the next new lot (so there were 2 groups of 5) all hell let loose, Colin would not leave the new hens alone.  It was about 6 weeks into the new hens arrival and we had to take Colin out, the hens just did not get on at all.  The new hens would not roost with the older hens and if the new hens were eating and the older hens came into the feeding bit the new hens rushed out. Hubby was worried the new hens would starve.
We took Colin out and things got better, at night I picked up the new hens and put them on the roost with the other hens, mixing them up close, there was a lot of cackling and moaning from both parties.  I did this for about a week and they became friendly.- we then got Colin back, he rounded up his older girls and straight away started to attack the new ones.  Colin was removed again to our neighbours house, where he lived for another few months and then went into  their pot, they said he was very tasty
Since Colin has gone the hens are so much happier and friendlier, I have not a clue now which is the older of the hens, they all look the same.
I hope your Dads girls can sort themselves out soon.
Pamela

[janiejakemum]

He thinks he may loose another of the new hens even though he has now given up and separated them, i think he's got the new birds in the greenhouse and the original birds in the usual place - he's not sure weather to just give them back where he bought them from.

I think he is now regretting not getting ex bat's, its not the money more the fact if he'd have not bought them there may still be four alive whereas if they'd have been ex bats you can look at it like at least he'd tried to save them.

My dads a bit of a softy - when he first got his hens one of them fell and broke its leg, most people would probably dish it up with roast potatoes my dad had the vet mend it with pins etc.  Hes got no money but did it because he didnt want to think if only he hadnt bought it it would still be alive - anyway, it turns out it's this bleedin hen doing most of the bullying!

[clairebeau]

-anyway, it turns out it's this bleedin hen doing most of the bullying!

I wonder if it's worth keeping this little minx on her own for a bit?  Knock her off her 'High Perch' sort of thing?

Good luck though.

C. x

[janiejakemum]

Yes i did suggest that to him, so he did for a day - a different hen stepped up though so he put her back.  I didnt think a day was long enough but he didnt see any benefit.

Thanks for the thought though.

[janiejakemum]

Just to let you know dad lost another of the new hens so has decided to get rid of them so now he has his original 4 and i expect will keep it that way - what a shame!  At least he found someone that wanted them very quickly.