Two coops, one flock?

Hi, we are new to keeping chickens and in July picked up one Red Star Rooster, three Easter Eggers, two Black Stars and a Welsummer. All a week old. Than in August we added 5 Plymouth Bar Rocks, two Welsummers, one Silkie, and a Cream Legbar Rooster (on accident we thought he was a she) also a week old. We kept the two flocks separated but in the same hen house and then slowly interrgrated them together. They sleep together, forage during the day separately since the larger chickens are so much larger, faster and I am not as afraid of them getting taken at this size by our neighborhood Redtail hawk. But there has been some squabbles, the two youngest Welsummers and the Silkie gets the most of the Hen pecking and our up and coming rooster, Handsome Jack seems to be very territorial. He has started a few fights with the bigger chickens. Fights that so far everyone has been able to walk away from but I am worried about the bigger he gets the fiercer the fighting can become.
We are already in the works of building a second larger coop however I am not sure how to devide the flock or if that is even a good idea. I had the thought that Handsome Jack might become even more territorial with his own hen house? He really is going to be a beautiful Rooster and I don't want to eat him, I just need some advice on the best way to keep these birds happy so they all get along.

I would personally get rid of one rooster and keep the large fowl together, than build a separate coop for bantam chickens and move the silkie and get her some company, the bigger birds could end up killing her, silkies don't do well in a mixed flock.

I had thought about that, building a third smaller coop for the Silkie and getting her a buddy. But since my chickens are free range during the day is splitting them up into seperate coops at night going to cause more of a divide and territorial issues? That is what I am afraid of happening.

I had that issue too. I have 40+ birds, but it didn't start that way lol

When I first started, I had just 2 breeds. Was fine with one coop. Then one day, I decided I would see what this thing online everyone was babbling about, this "Back yard chicken" thing, and wow, bird frenzy

I have 3 silkies, and a conglomeration of large fowl. The silkies did get put in their place, the bottom 3 birds on the pecking order I wanted a smaller, safer coop for the silkies, but it didn't turn out that way lol...

I HAD to turn a camper into a coop because the TOP hen decided she wanted nothing to do with laying eggs in the cramped hen house; she wanted the camper lol, so I now have 2 coops, but the silkies stayed put.

I separated the flock by breeds; kept all my Hamburgs, Anconas, and Buttercups in coop #2, because they're flighty mediterranean free ranging breeds; the first coop has all my layers


PS, the silkies get along just fine now, especially the roo, since both of my large roos got moved to the second coop with the free rangers

kmuchetti said:

I had thought about that, building a third smaller coop for the Silkie and getting her a buddy. But since my chickens are free range during the day is splitting them up into seperate coops at night going to cause more of a divide and territorial issues? That is what I am afraid of happening.

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I have a large fowl shed and a bantam coop, both free range in the same areas, both bump wings during the day, my bantam can always fall back to their own pen if things get rough out there, bantam can get picked on by bigger birds and you certainly don't want to see your big rooster mounting your silkie, as well as silkie crests being a magnet for picking by my the large birds. I absolutely adore my band of bantam, I currently have Cochin and d'uccle, I did have a couple of silkie as well. I'm my opinion the two shouldn't be housed together, the bantams need a bit more protection in bad weather, mine will stay inside a lot.

Mine never fight but the bantams give way to the bigger roosters, I don't have territorial fighting as it's more about each rooster having his band of hens.

Ok, what about this idea. What if I move all the larger birds over to the larger coop upon completion with the exception of the two newest Welsummers until I can get the Silkie a friend and then keep the smaller coop as a nursery? I have read that Silkies make excellent mother hens.
Once the Welsummers are bigger and keeping up with the flock they will integrate into the bigger pen. And I will keep a rotation like that for baby chicks coming in and adolescence chickens moving out.

Silkies love brooding and hatching chicks, they live to be moms, sounds like a really good plan.

Thanks guys for all of your input