When to introduce new chicken?

[hellymelly]

Just brought home new friend for our single chicken whose last companion died. She has been alone for weeks, and looked rather cross at the arrival of the new one, she pecked at her and jumped on her. Is that fairly normal? The new one is a youngster and I really don't want her hurt. I have taken her out of the run and she is in a cat basket next to the run at the moment. Should I bite the bullet and put them together?

Best to do intros in the evening when original chicken is roosting and sleepy. One tip is to douse them in talc so that they both smell the same. Good Luck :)

Talc! how funny. I am not sure if I have any, may have some baby powder somewhere. So you think it would be safe to pop her in later? I was worried that they might be fighting in the night or early morning when we couldn't intervene. The young one looks a bit scared, poor thing, even though the journey from the breeder is only about 5 minutes. I think she got a fright being caught.

We had to rehome our cockerel
thanks to our wanky neighbour and he settled fine at night with other cockerels and his new harem. Do you have any mite powder? That would do the same thing.

Did I mention that I don't like our neighbour? :o

they are tucked up together now, no obvious squawking ! So here's hoping they get along tomorrow. My older one was attacked by a rat last week and it looks as though she may have permanent damage to one eye. She suddenly looked more lonely and vulnerable (she is feisty and independant ,didn't seem too bothered being alone, we'd been waiting for her new chum to get a bit bigger before getting her) And I felt we should put another in with her asap. I fancied a silkie but the broody aspect stopped me, as Hen 1 never goes broody, so would be out all alone still. So have another silver spangled hamburg.

Awww glad they settled last night. How are they this morning?

Hamburgs are beautiful, really striking. I would love a silkie, but my broody Brahmas drive me bonkers, so probably not the best choice for me either!

Some pecking from Dot (chicken no1) this morning, and hogging of the food dish, but by lunchtime she was much more relaxed and seemed to like having a new chum. The new chum (as yet un-named, dd1 wants Elizabeth, DD2 wants Rose) was very reluctant to come out of the house and into the run, she looked interested when I shooed her out but quickly went back in. Hopefully she'll be braver tomorrow. We went out for a couple of hours and when we came home at 8 ish they were both cuddled together in a nest box, so fingers crossed all is ok. (hoping chicken 2 wasn't sitting there too terrified to move!).

We have just had this dilemma, went shopping for pellets and came home with a cream legbar and a buff rock
We let the others free range for a while and settled the new ones in a separated area in existing run
Put old chickens back in their run and all hell broke lose, two old ones are boking like mad, one of the older pekins was stalking the new chooks through the wire

we think they were noisy as they had been free ranging and then wanted to come back out, after about 2 hours noise and a lot of worry that the neighbours would be threatening us, we put them to bed to shut them up, it worked, at dusk we added the new ones in the coop and waited.... Silence!!
Half hour later one of the old ones was making a racket again so we put her in the cat box and separated her, OH was threatening to take the new ones back :(

This morning we let them all back out as normal in the same run, apart from a little chasing and pecking, they all seem harmonious now, fingers crossed it will be ok
It's incredibly addictive this chicken lark!
At least we will start getting eggs again, our 2 oldies have stopped laying, 2 pekins lay every other day, one tiny egg a day isn't going very far

Hellymelly, yours will be fine, they will be best buddies soon enough, they prefer to be in numbers :)

Oh well today has not gone well! Dot is bullying the new one, not letting her out of the coop, and jumped on her pecking when we put them in the run together. The young one is at the back of the house perched up, and goes and grabs some food and water when I go into the garden and Dotty comes out to see me. I'd hoped it would all be fine today. Dotty is used to being alone now, but when we had two there was no squabbling at all, they came together and although they had been part of a big flock of youngsters there was no settling in period, they just seemed to get along. I tried leaving the new one in the run (she has never seen grass before, so may be nervous of the open air) and having Dot out in the garden but although she pootled off to dust bathe and peck for bugs she also paraded the edges of the run like a nazi guard. Feel very sorry for the new chicken who is only a few months old (Dotty is 2). Should we maybe get another youngster or would that make it worse?

They will settle helly. When my top hen used to bully newbies I used to give her a little spray of water. Not a lot, just a tiny spray to distract her. She stopped after a couple of days.

Another newbie is not a bad idea. They do settle best in pairs.

I found setting up another feeding station helped too, the older chooks hang about by the food and water ignoring new ones, so just a couple of bowls of pellets and water to distract her?
Another chook would take the pressure off the bullied one, so I'd go for it :)

I think part of the problem is that she has been an only, so she is very terratorial now, and the new chicken can't hide as she is the only other one there. Will see how they are tomorrow and then maybe go and get a third. Prefer to have two as the run isn't huge and even though we move them about our garden is small and we can run out of grass (lawn gets trashed too). That's why we have bantams too.

Oh dear, the bullying seems worse today, and so something has to be done. Wish we hadn't left Dotty as a single for so long, as maybe that is causing the bullying behaviour. I don't know if we should take the little one back to the breeder and keep Dotty alone now, or get another youngster and see how that pans out- what do you think? Poor little one is getting attacked everytime she ventures out of the nestbox. My sweet tempered chicken has become a beastly sadist!

I would get another - it will help balance their natural hierarchy. Chickens are completely horrid to one another, but generally will get along with one another once they've had a chance to sort out their ishoos with one another.

When I got my first 4, who'd all lived in different pens at the breeders, it took 4 days for them to settle down and stop stalking the perimeter of the run when the weakest link was out and about.

The stalking is so horrible! with her tail fanned out and her chest all puffed up. Never had to deal with this before, had three who lived in harmony until Mr Fox came calling, and then two who were great pals until she had to be pts about 8 weeks ago. So the fighting is a shock! Well, not fighting, more assault and battery.

Ok so bullying worse again this morning, new chick really being terrorised and we've had to separate the, for now. SO- options are

1. Give new one back and keep Dotty alone.
2. Go pick up another youngster and see how three works out.
3. Swap the young one for a two year old (she has a Welsummer bantam of about two, would prefer another Hamburg but there are only this years chicks).

Have to decide this afternoon- which is most likely to work do you think?

Bumping as Dotty grumbling away in a cat basket (only have one hen house) and want to sort it out asap...Oh dear.

bumping again (loud protests from basket as I type !!)

Option 2. Also can you put Dot in the cat basket in the run IYSWIM? Do you have a dog crate as that would be even better. Dot would have a little space to peck, but couldn't get at the newbie.

Unless Dot is a bantam I wouldn't introduce bantams, her size would give her a big bullying advantage.

Have swapped and the newbie is in the cat box (it is quite a big one) she is very sweet, she's eating and drinking now but only when I chat to her. Yes Dottie is a bantam too, so now size advantage, although the young one is smaller as she's not quite fully grown.
We do have a dog crate but it won't fit in our run as the run is triangular. I think we will go for option two then, although I did wonder about getting the older bird along with this young one- am worried then the young one will be even more bullied.

Good luck. Having a second newbie should start to sort out Dot. She can't stalk both of them at the same time :)

This is chicken maths by the way. One becomes two, then three and then before you know it you have twelve. True fact.

I wish we had the space for ten. As it is my tiny lawn has been utterly trashed by two. Didn't want to have to get three as two has been fine for the past two years, they are in the run a lot (allowed out when someone is in the garden) and its not massive. The house is big enough for six-eight though.

Have taken your advice and now have another hamburg, she is in with the new one, in the box, will pop them both in with Dotty when its dark- should I do the talc dusting thing do yo think?