Well, they say "no news" is "good news".
The Girls are still free ranging all day together. Well, not exactly together, but in the same fenced off area IYSWIM. Both Bigees still chase the Littlees; sometimes it's a sort of threat to chase which causes the Litlees to run off, other times its a proper chase. There hasn't been too much pecking (not that I have seen, anyway).
Next step is to move the Eglu, minus it's run, into the main run for a couple of days and nights before integrating the girls fully. I'd like to get on and do it, but Milly is still so small. Honestly, if I didn't know her age (19 weeks last Friday), I'd say she was only 16 or 17 weeks now. That's what's holding me back. It's taken me 8 weeks to get to this point, I don't want to waste all that patience by rushing the last steps.
I'm going to be away for a day in a couple of weeks, which means no free ranging for the girls that day. If I'm going to put them all together it needs to be done well before that so that I can be sure they will be OK shut in together for a day; or I need to leave it until after then to take the step.
I've just re-read that and started to laugh. When I talk about being "shut in" I mean that the girls will be in their extremely large Run, complete with perches all round; a bench and logs to climb on, under and over; two dust baths; hanging feeder; peckablock......
I guess I'll see how it goes for the next few days, and maybe make a decision on Wednesday or so.
The Girls are still free ranging all day together. Well, not exactly together, but in the same fenced off area IYSWIM. Both Bigees still chase the Littlees; sometimes it's a sort of threat to chase which causes the Litlees to run off, other times its a proper chase. There hasn't been too much pecking (not that I have seen, anyway).
Next step is to move the Eglu, minus it's run, into the main run for a couple of days and nights before integrating the girls fully. I'd like to get on and do it, but Milly is still so small. Honestly, if I didn't know her age (19 weeks last Friday), I'd say she was only 16 or 17 weeks now. That's what's holding me back. It's taken me 8 weeks to get to this point, I don't want to waste all that patience by rushing the last steps.
I'm going to be away for a day in a couple of weeks, which means no free ranging for the girls that day. If I'm going to put them all together it needs to be done well before that so that I can be sure they will be OK shut in together for a day; or I need to leave it until after then to take the step.
I've just re-read that and started to laugh. When I talk about being "shut in" I mean that the girls will be in their extremely large Run, complete with perches all round; a bench and logs to climb on, under and over; two dust baths; hanging feeder; peckablock......
I guess I'll see how it goes for the next few days, and maybe make a decision on Wednesday or so.
