3 Week Old - How To Contain Them

[GrandmaCluck]

Here's my dilemna... I have 2 adult hens which are in the chicken coop and have access to a huge run. I raised 20 meat birds earlier and did not have the "flying" problem that I am having with my new 3 week old chicks. I have 31 of them. The hens did not adjust well to the meat birds (I kept them in the garage for the 1st 4 weeks). So I thought I would put the chicks right into the chicken coop - put them in a plastic swimming pool surrounded by 2 feet high chicken wire. This was the hens have full access to their nesting boxes but are kept away from the chicks. Now the chicks are flying to the top of my fencing and roosting there. I'm afraid they will get out of their pen and head for the outdoors. The chicken run is fenced in (dog kennel and welded wire) but at this stage they would be able to squeeze thru. What do you suggest I do?

 

[Elite Silkies]

I am making an inexpensive pvc/netting pen to keep some in. That way I can move them around.

 

[GrandmaCluck]

Sounds like a good idea. How would you make something like that?

 

[write2caroline]

Think Cube maybe

I would get those 3 way corner connections for each corner A cube would have 8 corners and pipe for the sides equal sizes (12 pipes for a cube) I would use some netting and some cable ties to tie it on.

I would not use the PVC glue. They can hold just by fitting them together. If you make it rectangular you might want the not bent 3 way connectors and add side support..

CAL
Jax FL

 

[newchicksnducks]

If you have 31 chicks in a child's swimming pool, they will surely outgrow it before they are ready to be integrated with the adult hens. Try sectioning off a portion of the coop (probably leaving the larger portion to the chicks as there are so many of them. Just temporarily screw wood to the sides of the coop and attach chicken wire (cheap, not meant for predators- just chickens) with wood staples to it. Make an angled roof on the section if you don't want to make it go all the way to the top of the coop. (This should help keep the hens from roosting on top of the chicks). This way you will have a mini-coop within the predator proof coop. This worked well for us during our integration of 3 different ages of chicks. One group in the main portion, chicks in the partition, babies in the house brooder. Then oldest and "tweens" in the main, youngest in the partition. Finally

all are in the main coop and we took down the divider. (Although I left the studs for the chicken wire....maybe next year