After the sad death of Peggy, one of our Ex-Battery Chickens, it left Maud all on her own, Chickens are flock birds and don't do well without company, so I had to do something to rectify this.
I contacted a few organisations that re-home ex-battery chickens the one nearest to me didn't have a date until early 2013, but the British Hen Welfare Trust had a date this month in Oswestry Shropshire, which is where we got our 1st Chickens from.
So I put a request in for 4 Chickens & it was accepted, so on Saturday 15th December we traveled to Oswestry to collect Flo, Freda, Matilda & Mabel.
Here you can see a video with Maud looking on:
Its not a good idea to mix established Hens with new ones, so I had to separate them for at least a week, the new Hens live in the run & hen house I built last year and Maud has to live in the greenhouse, but I did make her a hen house all to herself and she loves it. The garden has been split up with some temporary fencing so Maud and the newbies can see each other, but not fight etc.
Here they are a week on and they meet Maud for the 1st time beak to beak & how well they have settled in:
But back to the Allotment, the weather hasn't been very kind and I have neglected it a bit, well the Chickens have kept me busy! But as Christmas was so near I went to our plot on Saturday to dig up some Carrots & Parsnips, they will make Christmas dinner all the more special, along with the Potatoes dug up in the autumn.
I wish you all a Happy Christmas and a Fruitful New Year.
Lets hope 2013's weather is a bit kinder!
Thanks for reading/returning. Ian
Looks like your trying your best to diffuse any pecking order agression between your birds. Exbats do have reputation for being a little fiesty. Covering them all in the same scent and putting them in the same coop after dark can also work well. Some people spray them with perfume but I think Diatom or louse powder is better. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Sue, they are all happy together now, Maud has shacked up with one of the newbies (Mabel) in her separate hen house and the other 3 are happy in the main hen house. Still a bit of pecking order going on, as they are all together now in the garden, but nothing serious.
DeleteHi there! I have just followed your blog. I can't wait to read your all of your posts! Please feel free to follow me back, I am a new starter! Happy New Year. Bob.
ReplyDeleteHi Bob,
DeleteThanks for looking, I went to your Blog hoping to add you to my list that I follow, but couldn't find the follow link button? Thought you should know. Ian