Six Red Sex-Linked Hens Join the Flock

Today our flock grew by six!  Our friend, Andy, had arranged to purchase a dozen-and-a-half birds from a local farm.  He didn't need that many, so we agreed to take some.  We lost two hens last spring to hawk attack, and several of the hens are getting old.  The egg production has decreased.  We could use a few more good layers.

These are 18-week-old Red Sex-Links, known to be prolific layers of brown eggs.  By prolific, I mean 300 eggs per year!

The new chickens settled in to the coop nicely, but haven't ventured out into the chicken yard.  The older hens are keeping them at bay. Those old girls are in the midst of reestablishing pecking order after the death of their beloved boss, Rex.  These young pullets add another level of complexity.  They're sure to be at the bottom for awhile.

One interesting characteristic of these birds ... they arrived with trimmed beaks.  Beak trimming is often performed on egg-laying breeds for the purpose of preventing damage caused by injurious pecking ... cannibalism, feather pecking, and vent pecking.  I have never trimmed my girls' beaks, and have never had an issue with pecking.