How to raise Backyard Chickens: Re: [CHICKENS-101] introducing a new, adult chicken

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Re: [CHICKENS-101] introducing a new, adult chicken

I have done this a few times. The best thing to do is to keep the new chicken in a place where the resident chickens can see her, but not get to her. It is always wise to quarantine a new chicken for a while after you get it anyway to make sure she doesn't have a disease which can spread to your other chickens. I have an outdoor type rabbit hutch that I use for this purpose. I put the new chicken in there for a couple of weeks and put it where the other chickens can see it. If you can't do that, see if you can get a large cage, such as a wire dog crate and put the new chicken in there and put that inside the coop. When you are ready to let the new chicken in with the others, many people recommend that you do it at night. At any rate, you will want to watch them carefully after the introduction and make sure you have a way to remove the new chicken if things get savage. There will be some fighting and chasing, but it does not necessarily have to cause injury. Things should be OK after a day or so.

Kathy

In a message dated 9/1/2010 9:04:49 A.M. Central Daylight Time, simplifyitnow@gmail.com writes:

hi,

it's me again...

i am guessing that if you get one new chicken to add to 5 hens and 1 rooster that there is an introduction procedure to use so they don't fight?

any help, to once again, avoid chicken disaster, would be very much appreciated.

thanks,

virginia

p.s. we lost all but one guinea fowl. the whole flock, except that one who thought it was a chicken or something and always stayed with the chickens, wandered away into the scrub weeds, right where the fox family lives. it is the season to teach the kits how to hunt. i suspect the hawk family helped, we lost 10 in one day. we found a few piles of feathers, it was awful.

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