We went down to the allotment nice and early, because the drinkers clearly weren’t going to thaw without intervention. Much antifreeze was needed simply to unlock the gate!
The new bantams were fine, although they still form a little group of three, and haven’t fully integrated. But, thank goodness, there was no sign of bullying.
We let the established ones out onto the frosty grass (the Ixworths had a nice run outside too).
That meant we could get to know the new birds, and hand-feed them some Garvo Alfa Mix.
They were grateful for some nice fresh water, too.
The Sebright has certainly discovered the feeder!
But we’re not so sure about the other two. We’ve weighted the Grandpa’s feeder open with a brick while they get used to it, plus they’ve got the example of the other birds, so it shouldn’t take too long.
And they’ve got some cabbage to peck at, so they won’t starve. We’ll take down some porridge with sweetcorn later for a little warm supper.
John Norman's Blog 
Lovely new ladies John
Hi there, I have two lovely ladies too and wondered if it would be ok to feed them some samphire? Thanks!
Personally I wouldn’t feed samphire. Firstly, it is high in salt, which chickens find difficult to process, and secondly, it has a core of very coarse fibres, which could build up and cause an impacted crop.