Introducing new chickens - a vlog

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Cab

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I thought it might be handy for others if I do a vlog of my new girls settling in. This is them in the old run (which comes out of the garage for introductions), and an intro to the older hens. More on Friday or Saturday...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oH6j79OjLrQ&list=UUDzuaANtugRgkose-kSTdvg
 
Sometimes it seems the technology is out to get me :)

Fixed. Ta for heads up it wasn't working!
 
Works now Cab. Think you may need to enlarge the run when you move the new girls in as it looks very small on the video. How big is the run now?
 
Oh, its !uch bigger than it looks in that shot. The inner area has around three times the space of the outer one you can see there, and that looks smaller viewing it long ways on like that. Also multiple places to get on perches, places to go round corners, etc.
 
They are all good looking chickens, be interesting to see how they get on come Saturday. By the looks of some of your other videos they have a higher life expectancy than you do ;) .
 
Didn't go so well :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSISuubVVqg&feature=youtu.be

I've introduced hens before, using the same method, and it was fine. A little pecking to sort out who's boss, but this time Mary and Edie just wouldn't let up. You know how it is when pecking goes further than just establishing order, and a hen chases another again and again and again? Well, hats what happened with Edie following Peggy around and having a go at her over and over - so I stepped in and stopped things, it was by far the worst I've had introducing new girls.

So I've rearranged a bit - I've taken the old run down and modified the outer-run to fit the old hen house on to it, and closed the door between the runs. The two new girls are in with Matilda and Bess (who are fine with them - they're telling them who's in charge but not unreasonably so), and Mary and Edie, having drawn some blood from Peggys crest, are exiled to the outer run with the old hen house to go in to.

I've not had bullying of new hens like this before - and from what I've previously read exiling the aggressors is a better idea than exiling the victims.

Any thoughts?
 
I'm sure you're doing the right thing, Cab. In my experience it's always the ones at the bottom of the pecking order who are the worst bullies. I suppose they want to make sure of a leg up the ladder and thus are extra horrible to the new ones, to make sure they know their place. With luck, a week in the slammer will de-integrate them sufficiently for them to have to find their places again in a re-formed flock including the new girls.
I suppose having new ones alongside older ones, so they can see each other, is a good idea, though it may actually make the ones at the bottom of the old pecking order more determined to repel invaders. I certainly found that on one occasion, when a previously meek and mild Speckledy was so murderous through the wire to two new arrivals that in the end I had to rehome her before letting the new ones looses with the others. I've never heard a chicken make such a frightening noise, a sort of growl, and she puffed herself up to enormous size as well. She kept it up for two weeks, and had a go at them when she could reach through the mesh - I had to put an extra layer in, to make a double barrier.
 
I've had this type of behaviour a few times and generally let it run its course until the original birds have made their point, shutting off the two runs periodically to give the new birds an hour or so breathing space. However in fairness the space I had was a lot bigger than what you are working with there so even though they would be chased they had ample room to escape and there was enough room to hang multiple feeders and drinkers out of sight of the offending birds which you don't have. Once they have drawn blood you have done right to separate them. I would say by looking at Peggys comb that I think she is still too immature to be going in with your older birds, I would take them both out for a couple more weeks and then try again when she is better equipped to look after herself.
 
Marigold - yeah, its always the hens nearer the bottom of the pecking order who struggle to accept newbies. They had three weeks or so staring at each other across a couple of feet of path, and thats worked just fine previously. Really surprised it hasn't worked this time, but you live and learn :)

The younger girls are perfectly happy with Bess and Matilda. Bess the old speckledy especially has been cosying up with them on perches, and while she'll peck them once so they know who's boss, she's just as good a boss hen as she's been integrating chickens previously.

Dinosaw - the run I've got is a funny shape, and the house is really big - the shading in the footage kind of shrinks the interior of the inner run rather, its comes further back past the recording position and further forward than the end of the outer run. There are places to hide out and chill out for some personal time when a hen needs it, but this time round Edie (the cream legbar) has been pursuing the youngsters quite remorselessly. Not had this before - but I'm sure it'll sort out.

Anyway, I sat out in the inner run and allowed Mary in there for half an hour this evening, with no particular trouble (put the younger girls in their place and then all was well). Will continue with this, Mary again tomorrow, and Edie later in the week. If it takes a few weeks, well, there are worse things that could happen.
 
Another half hour last night with Mary in with them, no issues. They mostly ignored each other. Edie will be the hard one - at least another week apart I think.

There's a little pecking between through the wire from Mary but none of the 'I'm a big chicken wearing my fighting trousers' behaviour, looks like normal pecking order stuff. With Edie as son as the other hens are on the other side of the wire its like they're not even there any more.
 
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