ADDING NEW CHICKENS TO THE COOP

[BantamLover21]

Glad you joined us!

 

[Wyandottes7]

Welcome to BYC!

We're glad to have you.

 

[DaveOmak]

2 months..... 8 weeks of age..... I have read that number on multiple sites... and here it is on BYC's also....

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/raising-your-baby-chicks

Integrating them With the Older Flock​

If you want to mix them in with the older hens, have the chicks in a little chicken tractor(or separate pen)just outside the older flocks run, when they are old enough to be outside. You can put your chicks outside when they are about 3 or 4 weeks old, but they still might need a heat lamp. So they will be in there, growing up beside your older flock, until they are two months old. The older flock will get used to the chicks presence there, and this will help them to get to know each other a little before you mix them in. Once the chicks are 2 months old, or stop making baby chick noises, you may put them in with the older flock at dusk by setting them on the roosts.

Adding chickens to an already existing flock will trigger the reinstatement of the pecking order. The adolescent chicks will most likely not even put up a fight with the older chickens. Although the chicks will be very submissive, and run away when an older hen comes near, not being aggressive makes them easy to get along with the older hens over a period of time. Two months is kind of the sweet spot to integrate young chickens with the older flock. If the chicks are too small, the older chickens will kill them, and if the chicks are already full grown, the older chickens will kill them. They wont necessarily "kill" the full grown chicks, but they will fight allot, and this sometimes results in death of a younger chicken. At two months old, they are not too vulnerable, and they are not to feisty, so fighting or death should not be a problem.

 

[sweetdanat]

I'm also in the process of integrating three new hens (9 weeks old now) into our existing flock (2 hens). It was going great until recently. Somehow they have managed to get across the plastic fencing I used to divide the run in half. Everyone is getting along, but everyone is eating the wrong feed. Should I just mix layer and grower together and hope for the best? or keep them all separated? One young hen is even sleeping in the hen house with the big girls at night...hiding in the nesting box. Any help is greatly appreciated!

 

[truckguy]

I integrated my 3 new RIR to my 2 year old RIR about 3 weeks ago in the backyard. they free range all day. they were sleeping in the temp coup I made. tonight I put them in the coup while the older ones were out still. one went to her top roost and the other one was still out as I type this. I will check in a dew minutes and see if she has gone inside.

my 3 new RIR are about 3 months old now. and about the same size as my older ones are. they don't make chick sounds anymore.

 

[PacMan1582]

I have some 9 week old black aussies that I have slowly been integrating with my flock. The only thing I'm worried about is one of my BA's is a roo, I have a large Buff Orpington roo as well. I'm wondering what's going to happen when I get them in there. Hopefully the younger roo will steer clear of my BO and they will get along fine. I free range, have 22 chickens including the two roos and because of free ranging I need both roos. too many hawks in my area.

 

[srhmchlk]

Thanks for sharing this, I put out my 4 week olds last week to live penned beside the 14 week olds. They should be very comfortable with each other in a month's time!

2 months.....  8 weeks of age.....  I have read that number on multiple sites...  and here it is on BYC's also.... 

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/raising-your-baby-chicks

[COLOR=333333]Integrating them With the Older Flock[/COLOR]​

[COLOR=333333]      If you want to mix them in with the older hens, have the chicks in a little chicken tractor(or separate pen)just outside the older flocks run, when they are old enough to be outside. You can put your chicks outside when they are about 3 or 4 weeks old, but they still might need a heat lamp.  So they will be in there, growing up beside your older flock, until they are two months old. The older flock will get used to the chicks presence there, and this will help them to get to know each other a little before you mix them in. Once the chicks are 2 months old, or stop making baby chick noises, you may put them in with the older flock at dusk by setting them on the roosts.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]     [/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]      Adding chickens to an already existing flock will trigger the reinstatement of the pecking order. The adolescent chicks will most likely not even put up a fight with the older chickens. Although the chicks will be very submissive, and run away when an older hen comes near, not being aggressive makes them easy to get along with the older hens over a period of time. Two months is kind of the sweet spot to integrate young chickens with the older flock. If the chicks are too small, the older chickens will kill them, and if the chicks are already full grown, the older chickens will kill them. They wont necessarily "kill" the full grown chicks, but they will fight allot, and this sometimes results in death of a younger chicken. At two months old, they are not too vulnerable, and they are not to feisty, so fighting or death should not be a problem. [/COLOR]