The Big Day

It was an early morning.  We didn't get up much earlier than normal, but Papa Hen had to head to the airport and Mama Hen was heading into Red Door Coop for The Big Day: introducing all the hens with no barriers between them.  

I was ready to go with all tricks of the trade outside the coop.  

I remained quiet, not wanting the birds to wake up early and argue before they even hopped off the roost. Did I mention it's been raining cats and dogs since yesterday afternoon?  For this reason, our morning was darker than usual. When the coop door finally opened around 5:45, Lou was the first to come out.

She had some alone time to scratch and peck and explore how we moved things around in the coop.  Extra food and water dishes, tree stumps rearranged, and a new low plastic table all made the coop different enough that the old girls would be slightly out of sorts.  I hung a cabbage and hid strawberries.  

Finally Bill and Fitz appeared.  

Then things got a little wild.  Good thing the new girls can jump high and move quickly.  The old girls did their jobs of enforcing the current pecking order, defending their territory, and showing the new girls who's in charge.  It sounds fierce and maybe it is, but it is all normal chicken behavior.  

The new girls are holding their own and have discovered some of the hiding spots we created: on top of and under the brown coop & on top of the tree stumps.  I even hand fed them some strawberries.

I feel bad that they are hiding, but Weezy and BB look so darn cute and they will venture out soon.  I will be watching closely in the late morning to be sure they get to the nesting boxes to lay their itty-bitty eggs. 

At one point, Bill decided to take a dirt bath next to BB and Weezy.

Bill has not jumped into the nesting box yet.  We are hoping her broody phase has passed.  Thanks, Miss C, for your advice!