6 & 10 week old chicks?

[mg1010]

I have 3 chickens who are 10 weeks old, 2 ducks that are 8 weeks old and 5 chicks who are 6 weeks old. The older chickens and ducks already live together outside. I’ve been putting the chicks in a pen outside so they can see each other. Can I put them out? Or is it still too early?

 

[azygous]

Depends on where you live and your climate, which would be helpful for us to know if you want our advice.

But generally, chicks can go live outside by age five weeks since they have most of their feathers. They only need to be acclimatized and yours seem to have that step completed, so go for it. Unless you live in the arctic.

 

[mg1010]

I did it and they seem to be meshing well. The next 2 nights it’s supposed to be about 40 degrees, I bought a heat plate for cold nights, should I use it for the next 2 nights? After that it’s suppose to stay above 50 at night.

Depends on where you live and your climate, which would be helpful for us to know if you want our advice.​

But generally, chicks can go live outside by age five weeks since they have most of their feathers. They only need to be acclimatized and yours seem to have that step completed, so go for it. Unless you live in the arctic.

 

[azygous]

Sounds good! Yes, give them the option of having heat if they need it.

I brood my chicks from age one day in my covered enclosed run. My chicks currently are six weeks old and have been living in the coop and roosting for one week now. They were exposed to below freezing temperatures from the very beginning, so they never needed to acclimatize.

Their heat source in the run is a heating pad on a metal frame, similar to a heat plate. They stopped using heat by the time they were five weeks.Now, they need no heat in the coop at all.

It's very liberating to brood chicks outdoors where they naturally belong. You might consider it for your next chicks. They seamlessly go from run to coop and are integrated into the adult flock by age two weeks.

 

[mg1010]

Sounds good! Yes, give them the option of having heat if they need it.

I brood my chicks from age one day in my covered enclosed run. My chicks currently are six weeks old and have been living in the coop and roosting for one week now. They were exposed to below freezing temperatures from the very beginning, so they never needed to acclimatize.

Their heat source in the run is a heating pad on a metal frame, similar to a heat plate. They stopped using heat by the time they were five weeks.Now, they need no heat in the coop at all.

It's very liberating to brood chicks outdoors where they naturally belong. You might consider it for your next chicks. They seamlessly go from run to coop and are integrated into the adul

Sounds good! Yes, give them the option of having heat if they need it.

I brood my chicks from age one day in my covered enclosed run. My chicks currently are six weeks old and have been living in the coop and roosting for one week now. They were exposed to below freezing temperatures from the very beginning, so they never needed to acclimatize.

Their heat source in the run is a heating pad on a metal frame, similar to a heat plate. They stopped using heat by the time they were five weeks.Now, they need no heat in the coop at all.

It's very liberating to brood chicks outdoors where they naturally belong. You might consider it for your next chicks. They seamlessly go from run to coop and are integrated into the adult flock by age two weeks.

Sounds good! Yes, give them the option of having heat if they need it.

I brood my chicks from age one day in my covered enclosed run. My chicks currently are six weeks old and have been living in the coop and roosting for one week now. They were exposed to below freezing temperatures from the very beginning, so they never needed to acclimatize.

Their heat source in the run is a heating pad on a metal frame, similar to a heat plate. They stopped using heat by the time they were five weeks.Now, they need no heat in the coop at all.

It's very liberating to brood chicks outdoors where they naturally belong. You might consider it for your next chicks. They seamlessly go from run to coop and are integrated into the adult flock by age two weeks.

Thanks for the idea! So it’s been about 4 hours that they have been together, everyone was fine but the one duck will not leave them alone and keeps attacking them. This duck also picks on the older chickens but not nearly as bad as these chicks. I just separated them, do you have any advice?

 

[azygous]

If I had ducks, I wouldn't keep them with the chickens, especially small chicks. You did the only sensible thing.