Hi All.......thanks for your advice (in advance)....I have 6 hens and 6 cocks residing in a large outdoor avairy. 3 pairs are breeding - one hen has one chick and another 3 chicks. There are 10 breeding boxes availabe to all....BUT - I have one hen (named Silverette) who seems to take a liking to the breeding boxes already occupied by her girlfriends. Today I caught her attempting to enter the breeding box containing the hen (Misty) and 3 chicks. Misty was attacked and has facial injuries, though the chicks seem okay. My question is - should I remove Misty and babies, with breeding box, to a large cage into an area I have to the side of the main avairy, away from the jealous hen? I can easily mount the breeding box to the outside of the cage and Misty can still see all of her companions. I was thinking this may be best until her youngest are say another 10 days older. But what about Dad? Should he go with them? I was thinking that - say in a weeks time - the Silverette would have laid at least one egg in an empty nest box and will no longer be bothered - so I can then return Misty and brood! What do you think?

Edited December 2, 200816 yr by Elly

It is never a good idea to move nest boxes once a hen has settled in it.

Your solution to this case would be to remove the aggressive hen into her own cage (without a box) and any eggs or chicks she had get put in with the other two hens.

Thanks Liv - will do. What do you suggest though if the remaining hens start the same thing...as it seems that Misty is a little meek and has had her nest raided several times and her eggs broken?

I agree with Liv, I presume that once they are finished breeding you'll be taking the nest boxes out otherwise where will the babies go?

We would like to remove the nest boxes before the end of January, when the weather turns very hot. AS for the babies - we intend to keep them...they are our first brood. Next year will we undertake selective breeding.

We would like to remove the nest boxes before the end of January, when the weather turns very hot. AS for the babies - we intend to keep them...they are our first brood. Next year will we undertake selective breeding.

 

Great idea!!!

 

You have received great advice. I hope things work out for you, your birds and their babies... Please keep us updated.

Twas a big learning curve for my children - who love the hobby....but we wanted to start simply and learn as we went.......and it has been wonderful so far.

What do you suggest though if the remaining hens start the same thing

 

They should be okay. You often get one aggressive hen per aviary. I had one too when i was colony breeding - i removed her into the non breeding aviary and there were no further issues

Selective Breeding is definately the easier and safer way to go... it stops all the current problems you are having with your aggresive Hen. I would agree with Liv and say take the aggressive hen out for the time being. It is always a possibility that other hens will then take the place of the already aggressive one but the less hens you have and the more nestboxes the better Easier to remove one hen than a hen and her chicks/egss. Good luck and I hope to see you round here alot more.

 

P.S. We LOVE pictures :laughter:

Thanks Liv - I will do that and let you know how it all turns out - hopefully our four precious bundles will all be okay and ready to take flight around Christmas time. I will take pics for you - our children are thrilled and completely amased that something SO ugly could grow to become so very beautiful.

..our children are thrilled and completely amased that something SO ugly could grow to become so very beautiful.

 

 

:28: :28: :28:

haha my wife thinks they are ugly too... Personally I don't see it...

Aviary breeding is hard and very heartbreaking at times. I've been there, believe me. I too have an aggressive hen who took control of 4 of the 6 nest boxes I had up. As soon as she would see another hen even attempt to settle in she would go into attack mode. She even smashed two eggs one of the other hens laid. I then went to cage breeding and had little luck (out of ten eggs I only got one surviving chick). So this time round I compromised. I put 2 pair in one flight with 4 nesting boxes. I watched for a while and all, including the females, got along well. I opened the nest boxes and each hen chose a box and stayed in it. They now have a total of 9 babies and neither hen has bothered with the other, their box, or their babies. I lucked out and compromised the aviary and cage breeding. This is the best luck I've had yet. Thirteen eggs total, only one non-fertile egg, 9 healthy babies hatched so far and 3 eggs to go. GOOD LUCK. Let us know how things go. Just keep in mind there are some hens that are all about themselves and others that have to be up in everyone elses business!!! LOL (us women can be like that sometimes)

As the chicks arent fledged yet Crissy, please keep a vigilant watch. I used to breed that way and many a time lost chicks at the 3-4 week stage by a hen that wanted to start a second clutch in another hens box while her chicks were still in the first box. I got excited about chicks coming through and feathering up beautifully to find them slaughtered not 20 minutes later. It can and does happen, more often than we think.

I dont breed that way anymore

As the chicks arent fledged yet Crissy, please keep a vigilant watch. I used to breed that way and many a time lost chicks at the 3-4 week stage by a hen that wanted to start a second clutch in another hens box while her chicks were still in the first box. I got excited about chicks coming through and feathering up beautifully to find them slaughtered not 20 minutes later. It can and does happen, more often than we think.

I dont breed that way anymore

 

I will keep that in mind KAZ. Thankfully I am a stay at home mom and my keets are right in my living room with me so the first sound or sight of trouble I will be there. I will move a set and their chicks if need be at the first sign of trouble. I know no one way is fool proof when breeding. Even cage breeding a single pair can still turn out bad if mum or dad is a head case. I will hope for the best and see what happens.