Rescue hens

Woohoo! Another hen fan in the making
Right. First off, no less than 3 hens. If one dies, you won't be left with a lone hen.
Ex-batts are usually reasonably OK with human proximity, and they'd be delighted with the space you're offering. As long as the run isn't choked with weeds, they like having some cover and shade from the sun... Hot weather is hugely more challenging for hens than cold weather is.

House-wise, I'd be inclined to raise the kennel off the ground (poultry will attract rats... By raising it up you'll avoid the inevitable rat burrows under the kennel... It also tends to turn into a fine, sheltered area for dust baths ofter a while).
Let them access it via a ramp through a hen-sized hole in the door. This door should be lock-able at night. The kennel itself needs to be sturdy enough to put predators off trying to chew or dig their way in.

Ex-batts often don't know how to roost on perches, preferring to nestle down in bedding, but I'd be inclined to provide them with a perch in the kennel... Some ex-batts learn to compromise if you provide a wide perch for them to sit up on with feet flat, without them having to wrap their feet around the more natural branch-type perch.

They will need a nest box that's "seperate" from their sleeping area, a boxed-off corner with straw in the kennel should do, just make sure it's accessible for you.

Ex-batts tend not to understand entering and exiting their shed at first, as they're not used to this routine. But, that instinct to go to bed at night is amazingly strong, so if you herd them, or even carry them into the kennel the first few evinings at dusk, they'll get into the swing of it very quickly, and will soon put themselves to bed. Just open the kennel door in the morning and let them mooch their own way out.

Back to rats... Treadle feeders are fantastic to keep both rats and crows from accessing the hen food. It takes hens a bit of time to get into the swing of using them, but they're brilliant. You'll need to feed layer's pellets ad-lib, and they also enjoy wheat to pick at. They also love most kitchen scraps, and it's very satisfying recycling waste food into eggs . They say though that no more than 10% of their diet should be made up of scraps.
Ad-lib access to clean water too... Get a couple of good, big drinkers. Don't scrounge on the size of drinkers you buy! For 3-4 hens, go for a 5+ litre drinker. Or 2 or 3 of them.
Oyster shell grit should be available all the time too... Ours devour the stuff. Much cheaper to buy in 25kg bags from agri shops than the smaller portions you get elsewhere.

I alluded to it earlier... Predator control is vital. I don't believe anything beats a good electric fence system to keep foxes at bay... Pine martin and mink are a whole other problem... Very hard to keep them out and they will kill all before them if they get in. We have recently bought electric poultry netting, making sure that the mesh at the bottom of the netting is small (5cm x 5cm) which should keep most threats out... It's not cheap, but it's not madly expensive either (50m, complete with fence posts, cost €100), and you can easily move it around at will... You'd need to invest in an electric fencing unit too... You can pick them up 2nd hand pretty easily... Mains-operated are your only man, not battery-operated. Our run is huge, and we've electric fence (normal strands, not the poultry netting) from just above ground level to 4 foot in height, plus physical fencing and hedging (so any predators have to negotiate both a physical barrier, and an electric one), and haven't lost any birds yet... Investing in good fencing is a bit of a pain when you're starting out, but it has to be done. Without it, the risk of losing birds increases hugely. Once you have it done, it's done.

Just as an alternative, if you keep an eye on the usual websites, you may come across people wanting to rehome hens that they don't want any more. It's another way to rescue hens, but these will usually be used to garden life, and may even be used to people to the point of being friendly. We have recently become home to 4 lovely Sussex hens who were very well cared-for, but had always lived in a (spacious) shed, and only saw grass for the first time when they arrived here... They are delighted with themselves, and one in particular would trip you up in her attempts to get you to pick her up
Anyway... My point is that they're not ex-batt hens, but were just as in need of a new home! A little established group such as this will make it all that bit easier for someone like yourself starting out!

Congratulations!
It's usually recommended that you put newbies into their intended sleeping area, and let them make their own way out of it, so that they have some inkling of a "base" from the outset. If you have room to, then stick the crate into their shed, and leave doors open so they can mooch out when they've taken stock.
It may help to leave some food scattered just outside to tempt them... Chickens can't help but peck at any spot that's a different colour from its background, so you could put, say, white cardboard down and scatter some pellets on it. Not vital though, just a suggestion!
Re bedtime... They'll want to go to bed themselves just after the sun disappears from view, but still bright. Just to give you an indication of time, mine are lining up to go to bed from around 8.30pm at the min, all in by about 9pm. As they won't be used to the concept of *going to bed*, you may have to herd them in the first couple of nights, but being ex-batt does not curb that strong instinct to find a safe place to sleep as it gets dark. Indeed, you'll see all sorts of suppressed instincts now being given the opportunity to express themselves, one of the most satisfying parts of adopting ex-batts!
Keep a close eye that one isn't being bullied, which will tend to come to light when they're forced into close proximity such as their shed. With newbies, I'll always try to get up at dawn to open doors so they can get out, just in case there's a problem in the shed. It's only when they have a bit of light to see each other that there tends to be a problem, if there's going to be a problem at all.
You can expect an egg or two on Sunday, maybe even on Saturday itself, as they will have started the egg-making process before the big change that Saturday will bring (it takes them about 25 hours to make an egg), but you can expect a stall in egg production for a few days afterwards. They may start moulting straight away too, which also stalls the eggs.
Best of luck with them now! I'll bet there's nobody here who keeps hens who believes you'll still only have 3 in a few months' time... Once you have done, the temptation to get more tends to kick in

Great to hear your ladies are settling in hollypink! Congratulations on your new arrivals! I didn't want to get whispered's hopes up too much, but yep... Ex-batts often seem to be quite tame, verging on friendly, and they take things in their stride. We have a few breeds here that are known to be flighty... And despite having been in close contact with us since the day they hatched, they are still drama queens extraordinaire, running away shrieking with horror if you look at them sideways... Sheesh! But the red hens are much more chilled out!
Re bedding... I would use straw until you know more... If they're not into roosting on perches, they'll need straw to snuggle into. However, if they roost, then straw isn't great as it just gets too soiled, and you waste a lot of straw. I've used hardwood shavings, compost, and sand. The former two were abandoned when we got a bad red mite infestation as these substrates definitely "help" mites to thrive. Sand was good... Clean and easy to keep clean.
On that note, I always worm and spray newbies for mites and lice, but... Maybe someone with more experience of ex-batts can say, I'd imagine real, proper ex-batts are clear of parasites as their sheds would have been kept clean and relatively sterile. It's not in the interests of an egg producer to have birds not operating to full capacity.
So... Not sure I'd worry hugely at the outset. It's keeping on top of lice and mites when they're living a free range life that's the hard bit! But, cross that bridge once they're settled in and you're getting into the swing of it.
Food... Layers pellets are pretty much a must for laying hens, as is oyster shell grit. Your hens will get plenty of pickings as free-rangers, but the layers pellets just ensure that (a) they have ad-lib access to food, and (b) they're definitely getting the nutrients they need. Try to get your hands on some wheat... They love to pick at it!

Lady Haywire wrote: »

Just on the topic of hens though, DBB you with the weird breeds, any idea of this lass? Picked her up at place up the road so there cold be any amount of breeds in her but just find her total blackness rather strange. Always seen blacks with red combs at least.
(Yes I'm moving a dungheap, hens are delira!:D)

Omg I can IMAGINE the excitement at the dungheap... Isn't it hilarious how hens turn into velociraptors when there are worms on the go?
Would have to think there's Ayam Cemani in your hen missus... She's a lil beauty
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayam_Cemani

It's the only breed I can think of with the black pigmentation.

Re oyster shell grit... I got a wee bucket with a lid on it, originally containing oyster shell grit from the agri store... Cut a hole in the side of it, and filled it up to the hole with grit. Works a charm!

Re wood shavings as bedding... Wood shavings make lovely bedding, but, but, but, youve got to be really vigilant for red mite. They LOVE wood. I'm terribly paranoid about the little feckers, because they caught me unawares last year, I'd a major, major job to get rid of them... And despite being pre-emptive this year, we STILL got an infestation of them, though this one I got very early before any harm was done and all is good now. But my dog... I had to get into the mind of the red mite to get on top of the problem. How sad am I?

Scaredpanda, I don't keep ducks because of the mess... I do have geese though, I utterly adore them. They are dogs with feathers. It wouldn't be good at all to keep a goose on her own, and I can only assume it's the same for ducks. How about a couple of wee Call Ducks? Cuter than cute, and small enough that your husband won't even notice a second one. Promise