Free ranging & introducing into established flock

[OzarkEgghead]

Hi y'all!

I have an established flock of 9 hens, 5 Black Australorps & 4 ISA Browns, that are 2 years old. They free-range at will & always return to their roosts in the coop each night. I purchased 4 Dominique chicks 6 weeks ago that I estimate were 1-2 wks old at the time of purchase. I raised them indoors up until 2 wks ago when the weather turned warm enough to transition them to the henhouse.

I wanted them to "get to know" the older ladies while still being safe from abuse by the older hens, so, 2 wks ago, I placed them in a large wire dog crate that I placed in the coop. They can see & smell the older hens as they come & go and, although a little touching could occur, they were safe from aggressive pecking or flogging. Neither the babies nor the older hens seem to give much mind to the other.

I am giving consideration to allowing them to mix starting next weekend as I'll be off from work that entire next week & can monitor for any dangerously aggressive behavior and can "come to the rescue", if needed.

Do you think 3 wks of adjustment via the wire crate is enough before I allow them to mix? The babies will be 8-9 wks old by that time. Secondly, where my older girls are accustomed to free-ranging, I was concerned that penning them in during the mixing process might actually increase the likelihood of bad behaviors...but I'm also concerned that mixing AND free-ranging for the first time all at once might be a bit too much stress for the babies. Could really use some opinions/tips because I usually don't have a mixed flock like this & I've never had to deal with these issues before.

 

[Harmony Fowl]

Your instinct is right: more space is better. You are releasing chicks into the flock later than I do (I do mine at 4-5 weeks), but I rather doubt your chicks will venture very far at first. They will know the crate as safety and stick close until they feel comfortable. They almost certainly won’t be trailing around after your older hens; it’s much more likely that they will form their own group for awhile. The groups will mix in the coop and at the feeder and eventually you won’t notice so much division. Just don’t expect that right away.

I leave food and water immediately outside my outdoor brooder. On the very first outing chicks come out to eat from the adult plate. There is pecking but usually everyone is respectful. The feeder is great place to get them to mingle. It’s a great way to assess your hens’ tolerance level for the youngsters, too. Pecking is normal, even a little chasing, but the hen should give up quickly after her point is made and the chick should bounce back just as fast once it’s over. I have a second feeder nearby so nobody goes without.

I think it’s plenty of time. The sooner, the better now. Chicks fly under adults’ radar better than adolescents. Take advantage of that free pass chicks get while you can.

 

[Harmony Fowl]

Oh, just a best practice for me. Let your adults out first, let them eat and move out to range if that’s what they do. Then let the chicks out and let individual hens come back and find them there. Letting a flock stampede over new members as they are released for the day is not the way to go. There’s also lots of drama often in the morning. Plus, one or two hens coming back to find the chicks loose will probably go much better than all nine at once. Hopefully they’ll just think those birds that used to be close are even closer now.

 

[OzarkEgghead]

Thanks, guys. My henhouse ramp is open 24/7 so my older girls are often already out starting to scrounge for bugs at first light...even before the sun is up...so I was definitely going to let them empty out before setting the chicks loose.

Now that I've had a chance to talk with you guys, I'm actually thinking of letting them loose tomorrow instead of waiting another week since you recommend sooner rather than later. I would think if there was going to be any "ugliness" it's more likely to occur in the first day or two & I'm planning to stick to the farm this weekend so I'll be here to break up any significant fighting. By Monday, when I head back to work, they should be adjusted enough that they shouldn't need me playing mother hen...(yeah, I know, bad pun but I couldn't resist!).