Thoughts on this plan?

[crunchygranola]

I

What does outside look like? How big (in feet or meters) is your coop? Your run? Photos showing the inside of your coop could be very helpful. A photo showing the run might be helpful.

When I integrate the chicks form a sub-flock. If they go near the adults they will likely get pecked. It doesn't take them long to learn to stay well away from the adults. During the day they keep a distance. At night they do not sleep on the roost with the adults but find a safe place to sleep. About the time the pullets start to lay they are allowed into the main flock.

All of this takes room, but many of us don't have a lot of room to spare. If we know what your space looks like we may be able to come up with tricks to make this easier.

Integrating a single chicken can be hard. Chickens are flock animals and want to be with other chickens. A single hen may want to be with the chicks because she is a flock animal but if she gets close she may peck them. If the young one being integrated were the single, they want to be with the others but are in danger of being pecked or worse if they get close. If you can, when you integrated it is best to have at least two. I prefer a minimum of three in case something happens to one of them.

I don't have individual chickens. I have a flock where the individual members change as necessary to keep the flock happy, healthy, and productive. I understand some people see each individual as a pet and feel very differently than I feel. We all have different attitudes, experiences, and opinions.

I really don’t want to cull my girls— but I’m struggling to find a solution. As of now, their coop is temporary, and they only go in at night when it gets dark. I’m in the process of building a much larger coop with a run, but they are almost never inside it except for nighttime. They’ll be getting a much larger, sturdier coop next week. (Ignore the current feeder and waterer, too… they broke both of them last night )

 

[crunchygranola]

I

I really don’t want to cull my girls— but I’m struggling to find a solution. As of now, their coop is temporary, and they only go in at night when it gets dark. I’m in the process of building a much larger coop with a run, but they are almost never inside it except for nighttime. They’ll be getting a much larger, sturdier coop next week. (Ignore the current feeder and waterer, too… they broke both of them last night )View attachment 3838044

The coop itself is 4ft / 3ft and I took out the nesting boxes because they don’t use them yet to provide more room. Run is 7ft by 3ft at the moment, but I let them out around 6am every morning to free range until 8:30pm or nightfall.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Thanks for the photo and information, that helps.

First, I'll repeat what Mrs. K said. I think you understood but some people seem to need reinforcing. To cull does not automatically mean to kill. It can mean to eat or just kill and dispose of the body. It can mean to move from one flock to another. It may mean to sell or give away. Selling or giving away laying hens is usually not hard. Neither are young pullets. Cockerels can be more challenging.

So you will finish the new larger coop in a week. My suggestion is to keep two of the original flock in one coop while you keep the young ones on the other coop. Once the young ones have been coop trained (return there at night to sleep) let them all out to free range together. A week of confinement is usually enough to coop train. The first time or two you probably want to be around to observe some but usually this goes well. They form two different flocks that keep to themselves during the day and sleep in separate coops at night.

After they have proven to me that they can coexist in a large run or free ranging without harm I wait until night and put them all together in one coop. With mine that's usually a month or two but that has nothing to do with behaviors, it's just when it's convenient for me. Some people do it after a peaceful week of coexisting. Be down there at daybreak the next day to see how it is going. You may need to open the pop door so the young ones can get away. What I typically see is the young ones up on the roosts where the adults on the floor cannot get to them. They use the roosts to avoid the adults. Once the adults leave they come down and leave.

You may have to be consistent in moving them to the new coop every night until they get the message and start putting themselves to bed in there in their own. Some broods learn that very quickly, I've had a couple of broods that took three weeks before the last few got the message. Each brood is different.

Good luck!