Sugar is still not right but there has been an improvement in her egg laying. She is still sitting in the run for more than half of the time but looks normal in between. I know when her next egg is due because she has a very humped back posture. Today she laid her second egg with a good shell.
I was going to leave the new girls with the flock all day today but then I worried that they were not getting enough food and water so I ended up putting them back in their own space for a couple of hours in the morning and again in the afternoon. This gives them a chance to eat and drink in peace. I have also set up several feeding stations around the run.
I am really struggling with the new camera. It takes a second or two to focus which is fine for most photos but doesn’t work for chickens. By the time it clicks the chooks have moved. I will continue to practice but at the moment am using my old camera at the end of the day when the light levels are low and it still works. This has rather limited my photos of integrating.
At the end of the day yesterday I tried to to direct the new girls in to the chicken shed. Once Cloud was in and perched she stayed there but not so Mango. She kept popping back out and I had to wait until the pop hole had closed and then pick her up and perch her next to Cloud.
I checked on them at six o’clock this morning and all was calm.
I managed to direct Cloud through the pop hole but she kept coming back out again. Mango meanwhile had ran down to the bottom of the run. I realised this wasn’t going to be easy. I decided to try again just before the pop hole was due to close.
I left it until about five minutes before the pop hole was due to close. I directed both new girls in and then with my hand blocked them from coming out for a few minutes until the pop hole closed.
I then opened the door and lifted both girls to the perch. A bit of a work in progress I think. I’m not sure how long it will take for them to get the hang of it but I been here many times before and they always get the hang of it in the end. It’s early days yet so not bad progress. I happy that it’s going in the right direction.
Click here to see the history of my flock.
They are very cute. They have long legs. As you say, they will soon get the hang of the bed time routine.
They are quirky. They have long necks and very long legs. Bedtime is a work in progress but they always get the hang of it eventually.
Main thing is they look really healthy and content. I share your concerns about Sugar, but hope that things right themselves before too long.
The new girls have settled in really well. Sugar has just laid her fifth egg in nine days and all but the first one have had a good shell. We know something is not quite right because of all her sitting around and her posture before laying but on the other hand her eggs have improved and she looks fine in between when she runs up for treats. Not long ago we thought we were on the verge of losing her but now her egg laying has improved and she certainly hasn’t worsened so for now we are happy to let her be and see how she goes.