When to let Mommy and new chicks into the flock

[MarkButcher]

Just an update, I heeded in general the advice regarding when to let mommy and her chicks out into the flock and at about 3 to 4 weeks, saw mommy pacing the cage line, telling me herself that she was ready and anxious to end her isolation time and bring herself and her chicks out. I let them out for a couple hours yesterday afternoon, and she led the chicks back into her nesting box when the shadows were getting a little long, and she's off and running today, leading her babies throughout the chicken pen and chicken yard. As some of you predicted, she did her mommy thing and brooked no tolerance for the other chickens getting to close. Those that did, learned that a mommy with chicks isn't something they wanted to trifle with, lol!
Interesting tho was, she was ok with the 2 roosters getting close, and a few of the hens, and others she reacted to with varying degrees of hostility, some more then others. To some, it was just a single beak tap, a few others, an all out attack telling them to stay completely away.
Thanks for the feedback and advice, everyone!

 

[DobieLover]

Just an update, I heeded in general the advice regarding when to let mommy and her chicks out into the flock and at about 3 to 4 weeks, saw mommy pacing the cage line, telling me herself that she was ready and anxious to end her isolation time and bring herself and her chicks out. I let them out for a couple hours yesterday afternoon, and she led the chicks back into her nesting box when the shadows were getting a little long, and she's off and running today, leading her babies throughout the chicken pen and chicken yard. As some of you predicted, she did her mommy thing and brooked no tolerance for the other chickens getting to close. Those that did, learned that a mommy with chicks isn't something they wanted to trifle with, lol!
Interesting tho was, she was ok with the 2 roosters getting close, and a few of the hens, and others she reacted to with varying degrees of hostility, some more then others. To some, it was just a single beak tap, a few others, an all out attack telling them to stay completely away.
Thanks for the feedback and advice, everyone!

I would have let her out right after she got off the nest with the chicks.
That is how she integrates the chicks into the flock.
I've never had a rooster be aggressive to chicks. My big guy insists on visiting setting hens and stops by soon after they hatch to check out the chicks.

 

[MarkButcher]

I'm

I would have let her out right after she got off the nest with the chicks.
That is how she integrates the chicks into the flock.
I've never had a rooster be aggressive to chicks. My big guy insists on visiting setting hens and stops by soon after they hatch to check out the chicks.

I'm gone (trucking) throughout the week and didn't want that happening without some oversight on my part. Last year when the flock was younger, I lost an entire brood who'd hatched unprotected and unsupervised, and I think a lot of that was due to a young flock not having developed much of a mature attitude about "those fuzzy little things running around".