11 week old pullets

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Shen11 said:
Thank you, we definitely designed the coop with square footage minimums in mind. We can only have 4 birds at a time, so now that 2 have passed, we are replenishing the flock. My main question isnt about whether they will fit, but whether we should leave the in a dog crate either inside or outside the coop at night time? Whenever the time comes for them to roost with the resident hens, we wont have a way to keep them seperated on the roosting bars. Sorry if my initial post was confusing
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Gotcha, I was thinking in the coop, they have a place to run to should the other chickens go after them. If they're the same size or close to your older chickens, then I like @sourland's idea, just put them together at night.
 
Hello and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.
Coop minimum size comes into play when you're doing an integration. When you raise all four together it's not as much of a problem. You may find that you're going to have a problem with coop that small during integration. As for what to do with the two pullets at night, if your run is predator proof you can leave them in there in the crate. Don't even bother shutting the door just let them go in if they want to.
 
Shen11 said:
Thank you, apologies if my post was unclear. How long do you think they should they sleep crated if theyre only 11 weeks?
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Continue with your 'look, don't touch' integration for a week. Then permit them to free range together. After another week of that don't put them in the crate due the night in the coop. Just let them decide if they want to get in the crate out in the run or if they're willing to try to roost with the hens.
The size of the birds has nothing to do with it. Neither does the age. It has to do with a level of comfort between the two sub-flocks. I have 5 week old chicks and 8 week old pullets and cockerels roosting with hens aging anywhere from 1 to 7 years old of all sizes.
How many linear feet of roost space do you have?
 
DobieLover said:
Hello and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.
Coop minimum size comes into play when you're doing an integration. When you raise all four together it's not as much of a problem. You may find that you're going to have a problem with coop that small during integration. As for what to do with the two pullets at night, if your run is predator proof you can leave them in there in the crate. Don't even bother shutting the door just let them go in if they want to.
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Thank you, the run is predator proof. If they sleep in the run would they eventually move
DobieLover said:
Continue with your 'look, don't touch' integration for a week. Then permit them to free range together. After another week of that don't put them in the crate due the night in the coop. Just let them decide if they want to get in the crate out in the run or if they're willing to try to roost with the hens.
How many linear feet of roost space do you have?
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That sounds reasonable. We have about 12 feet of linear roost space for 4 hens
 
DobieLover said:
Continue with your 'look, don't touch' integration for a week. Then permit them to free range together. After another week of that don't put them in the crate due the night in the coop. Just let them decide if they want to get in the crate out in the run or if they're willing to try to roost with the hens.
The size of the birds has nothing to do with it. Neither does the age. It has to do with a level of comfort between the two sub-flocks. I have 5 week old chicks and 8 week old pullets and cockerels roosting with hens aging anywhere from 1 to 7 years old of all sizes.
How many linear feet of roost space do you
Click to expand...
 
Sorry, I think the updates im getting via email are out if order. Good to know age isnt a huge factor like that. Its my first integration, but im feeling confident. The two pairs are already dust bathing next to each other on either side of the fence, so everyone seems relaxed now a few hours in. Thanks for all your advice!
 
Debbie292d said:
The rule of thumb for a coop for standard-sized chickens is 4 square feet per chicken. In a run, it's 15 square feet per chicken.

Much less than that can increase problems with them picking on each other.
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I agree but also know that one can have a little less space in the coop if they free range from sunrise to sunset. The flock dynamics must be good, as in they get along. One has to plan. What if they have to be secured in the coop/run, for a few days, due to weather?

We are only 1 hen extra in the coop and it works when confined, for our flock. It doesn't work for all flocks. One needs to know their birds personalities, dominance, weakness, pecking order etc.

I concur with @sourland to put them in the carrier in the coop at night for a time.
 

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