emorems0
Songster
Maybe I just got lucky or my birds are just that much more awesomer than mostbut I see all the threads about people integrating there babies with each other and older birds and I wonder how my birds survived. I bought 4 @ 1 week old & 3 @ 2weeks old. When I bought them they were all thrown into the same box for the ride home (the place I bought them from had all different breeds in separate brooders so they knew what was what), then when we got home they were all put into the same brooder. Never had any problems of them trying to kill each other or really even picking or pecking or general chicken abuse. The 4 younger ones did get stepped on a couple times by the bigger ones but that's about all that happened.
I didn't have a problem mixing younger birds at all, I had turkeys first, then added a bunch of meaties, Delaware and dark Cornish, then added two slightly older orpingtons when the bunch was around 8 weeks or so. The ONLY problem I have is when the younger birds (any from that mixed group) get in with the 1yr old hens. I feel like maybe pecking order and territory are MUCH more viscously defended as they mature... or maybe their pecks just do more damage when they're older (or maybe my hens are just meanies).