introducing new hens

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I had 3 hens in a single coop and are free range. A strange dog got onto my land and killed the leader. I then aquired 2 more hens but I cannot get the original hens to acccept these in their coop,even though they forage all together so I now have 2 coops. Would aquiring a cockerel and introduce him and the new hens into the single coop with the original hens solve my problem as I assume the cockerel would take dominance and keep the 4 hens in order.
 
Hi Esmaralder and welcome to the forum.

Have you tried waiting until all the hens have settled down (around 8.15 to give them a chance to get nice and sleepy) then wiping vinegar over the wings of the dominant hens in their coop, then doing the same with the newbies, and transferring them to the coop with the bossy ones in? Shut the pophole, and get down there as early as you can manage, to let them out and see what happens. This has worked for me - the idea is that they all sleep together, all wake up smelling the same (!) and go out as a flock to eat breakfast. Then remove the second coop, so the next night they have no option but to go in with the bossy ones. The bossy ones will go to roost first, so if you go down after they've settled, when the newbies are really wanting somewhere to roost, you can then encourage them to take those important steps up into the scary dark house for themselves, rather than you lifting them in. I've found it helps to make a little enclosure with a length of wire netting or similar, round the entrance to the pophole, with the new hens inside, and then gently push them towards the pophole with this as support. Then when they're inside, shut the pophole. There will be some bumbling around, but in the dark they won't be attacked and will settle down after a few minutes. You may need to encourage them to go in for a couple more nights until they get the idea and have established their own places to sleep on the perches. Don't try this too early, or they'll just come out again. After a night or two, you'll go down there and find everyone is all nicely tucked up in bed and then there'll be no more problems. As you say they are foraging together with no problems, I don't think it will take long for them to roost together if you help them to do this in the way I've suggested. Just a thought - you are sure the coop is clean of redmite? as this may be the reason the new ones don't like going in it.

By all means get a cockerel if you really want one, and have tolerant neighbours, but this isn't certain to solve the present problem, and may introduce new difficulties in itself, so I'd sort out the roosting and check the redmite first.
 
Marigold had given you great advice.I can only add that sometimes it takes time to get them use to eachother but you will get there.It took 4 weeks for mine to accept new addition to flock,but another addition it took 2 weeks-it dipence of character of the new chickens too.No rush to get cockrell :D
 
Put the old birds in the new coop and the new ones in the old coop or remove the old coop and put them all in the new one if there is room. Check for red mite in old coop is a good idea. Marigold is spot on with the smell issue. We used lavender oil in water misted by a perfume sprayer onto the hens; it smells better than vinegar and should work as well.

Cockerel wll remove some problems and add others. More feed and less space, noise, plus will tread a favorite hen to baldness -we've just removed one before the skin went on the wings and she had a saddle on!
 

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