{"id":657,"date":"2013-04-23T09:18:44","date_gmt":"2013-04-23T13:18:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/?p=657"},"modified":"2013-04-23T09:18:44","modified_gmt":"2013-04-23T13:18:44","slug":"introducing-new-flock-members","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/?p=657","title":{"rendered":"Introducing New Flock Members"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Fb-Button\"\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>
<\/fb:like><\/div><\/div>

So you bought some chicks a few weeks ago and they are quickly outgrowing their brooder, they grow fast don’t they! \u00a0Now you’re wondering what to do with them. \u00a0If you have an existing flock and are a seasoned chicken keeper you probably already know that introducing new members to your flock can be challenging. \u00a0If this is your first time introducing newbies, here are some helpful tips to make the transition go a little smoother.<\/p>\n

1. \u00a0Never put newbies in with the flock without a proper introduction!<\/strong><\/p>\n

~ \u00a0If you just open the coop and put new birds in, the already established flock will not be welcoming at all! \u00a0They will chase, peck at, and ultimately attack the new intruders and this can result in death! \u00a0Chickens can be territorial! \u00a0To prevent that, you MUST properly introduce them by sectioning off an area both in the coop and in the run where both sets of flock members can both see and hear each other without anyone getting hurt, put the newbies in this “safe zone.” You will want to do this for a week to start. \u00a0After a week, you can let them out under careful supervision! \u00a0If it does not go well, put the newbies back in their “safe zone” and try again in another week. \u00a0This could take several attempts so be patient! \u00a0Eventually everyone will learn to accept one another. \u00a0However, I have personally had experience where just 1 bird was being a “bully” and picking on all the newbies even after several weeks. \u00a0If this happens within your flock, simply reverse the situation. \u00a0Instead of locking up the newbies, lock up the bully and repeat the “safe zone” steps until everyone is getting along. \u00a0As I said, be patient, this could take a month or so!<\/p>\n

2. \u00a0Never introduce just 1 bird to your flock!<\/strong><\/p>\n

~ Introducing just 1 bird is basically a death sentence for that bird. \u00a0Always introduce more than 1 at a time.<\/p>\n

3. \u00a0Offer hiding places and distractions!<\/strong><\/p>\n

~ Having hiding places gives scared new birds an outlet from any bullying they receive. \u00a0It is a chickens natural instinct to establish “the pecking order.” \u00a0There WILL BE pecking even after a proper introduction, this is normal as long as no one is bleeding. \u00a0If bleeding occurs, remove the bleeding bird, treat, and put back in the “safe zone” until the wounds heal.<\/p>\n

~ Offering distractions when introducing new members is also helpful. \u00a0It gives would be bullies something else to do. \u00a0Distractions can be anything, but new treats work best. \u00a0Many feed stores sell treat cakes which take chickens awhile to get thru. Or you can hang a head of cabbage or 2 to keep them busy. \u00a0Use your imagination.<\/p>\n

Applying just these few steps can make things go so much easier on all of your feathered friends.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

So you bought some chicks a few weeks ago and they are quickly outgrowing their brooder, they grow fast don’t they! \u00a0Now you’re wondering what to do with them. \u00a0If you have an existing flock and are a seasoned chicken … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-657","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2jrxr-aB","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=657"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":658,"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657\/revisions\/658"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=657"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=657"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/roseshadowranch.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=657"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}