The last time I wrote about my chickens, I shared the story of how I learned that a hen is not a hen when it is a rooster. Please read my tale of stupidity here. Since last September my six hens were reduced to three when I let them forage outside of their run for a few too many hours, and then from three to two as the run was again penetrated by a raccoon. Sadly, I think the two remaining hens were suffering from PTSD and spent very little time outside as a result. They were not laying regularly, and we found ourselves asking other chicken farmers for eggs. Something had to be done, so I started to look for more pullets.
After unsuccessfully scouring Craigslist for a little while, I called the farm where I purchased my original hens. They said they still had plenty of birds that were about 16 weeks old (they start laying at around 18-20 weeks), which was perfect. A friend of mine was actually looking for more birds as well so we headed down there together. I got four more birds and he got ten. We each got one Black Star hen and the rest were all Rhode Island Reds.
It was dark by the time we got back, which, as I have read, is a good time to introduce new chickens into a flock. The older chickens will be more accepting if they wake up with the new chickens as opposed to throwing them together during the day. Of course my two older birds were establishing the new pecking order the next morning. This is a noisy and painful looking ordeal. Lots of chasing, feather pulling, and general bullying which makes you feel bad for the new birds. I tried removing the two older birds for a while to calm them down and added a head of cabbage for distraction, but I think it was mostly time that calmed down the bullying. It was also helpful that there were four new hens to the existing two hens. The new ones weren’t outnumbered, and the bullying was spread out among the four.
Sadly what happens next is another lesson in backyard farming: sometimes you get sick chickens. Unfortunately the owner of the farm where we got the new birds was not in when we picked up the chickens. She later told my friend and me that we should have quarantined them and given them antibiotic before adding them to an existing flock (my flock of two, and my friend’s flock of 25 birds). We both had introduced the new birds directly to our flocks only to realize later that they had given our flocks a bug.
The birds displayed a range of symptoms including lethargy, head shaking, snotty beaks, watery eyes, and in the extreme case of one of my hens rattled breathing and gaping for air. My friend feared it was gapeworm, a type of parasite that causes difficulty breathing due to the worms hanging out in the bird’s airway. That usually kills them, but could be treated with a dewormer. My birds displayed very little gaping, and I thought they had a cold. I was able to talk to a vet friend of mine who told me he would give me an antibiotic that would help clear up their upper respiratory infection.
Well, it was probably a couple days too late as I ended up losing one of my older birds. She was the hen who had the worst symptoms, though I thought she had turned the corner and was getting better. The hens are all recovering nicely with the help of the antibiotics they are getting through their water. They are all outside all day eating scratch and showing healthy appetites.
Another lesson learned and, unlike my friend who lost almost a third of his flock, I only lost one bird. Thankfully the owner of the farm said she would replace the birds that my friend had lost. While we weren’t too keen on using antibiotic at first, it was the only way we saw to keep them alive. Aside from learning a valuable lesson, the other good thing that came out of the situation is that while the older bird is still at the top of the pecking order, she is much more relaxed about her bullying. The hens are all getting along very well. Here they are on their outdoor perch enjoying a sunny December day. Now hopefully they get to laying some eggs.
Ladies enjoying the sunshine
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That is a sad, sad story! I like the color of the Black Star!
12/16/2011 – I need to find a babysitter for my 2 six month old Guinea Hens while I am out of the country in January. I live in Morristown, NJ. Anyone with an area for them or an idea, please call me – 973-879-1741.