Possum-Pie
Songster
9 weeks ago we got 4 hens (about 2 years old) from someone who was giving up her chickens. I know nothing about their lives before they came to us except that there were 16 total in that flock. They have not integrated at all with my established flock (2 hens and a rooster about 2 yrs old). They stay in the coop when the rest go outside, If I put everyone out and close the coop door the new hens congregate together way at the end of the run. Inside the coop, the new hens sleep on the lowest roost or in nesting boxes (I want to eventually stop that behavior). The new hens are pushed out of the way when interacting with the established hens, but not really bullied. If I give treats, the new hens get none b/c the old flock keeps them away. I was hoping that by this time they would integrate. In your experience, how long does that take? I definitely don't want the new hens to spend their whole lives in the coop but also don't want to throw them outside each day and close the coop door...To compound the problem, two of the four new hens are bullied by the other 2. The new EE and the SLW generally sit together squeezed into one nesting box if everyone else is in the coop.