7 week chicks

[Cowhoney]

Alright, so I have 3 7-8 week chicks. All three are different breeds, and it turns out two are roosters. Which wasn’t my plan, but I’m rolling with it. So first off my two roosters
1) is a serema
2)) is a Cochin
3) was told was a silkie hen but has no traits but the five toes but is a hen.

My serema is full size ( baseball size) and started crowing at 4 weeks and now at 7 weeks my Cochin is playing copycat. Now there all still inside cause it still to cold to put them outside and I have 5 full grown 23 week old laying hens outside.
Now to my issue( yes I’m long winded) both male roosters are constantly trying to mount my baby girl chick. My motherly instincts tell me to remove her from the pen with two roosters so young but I don’t know what to do. Is this normal behaviour or am I over reacting.

 

[azygous]

Do these three chicks comprise you whole flock? Do you plan on keeping the two cockerels? Of more concern is how the two cockerels, once mature, will overmate the pullet if there are no more than the one hen. They could even seriously injure or kill her with their focused attentions.

A healthy ratio is one rooster for around ten hens to prevent overmating of any single hen.

Back to the present. Unless the cockerels are being overly rough, if there are signs they might injure the pullet (beyond the horror of adolescent sex), I would leave them alone.

At two months, chicks are entirely equipped to go outdoors. You just need to start gradually with day trips until they get acclimatized to cooler temps.

If they are still under a heat lamp indoors, for heaven's sake turn it off. Chicks no longer need heat during the day at three weeks, and need no heat at night after five weeks depending on how cold the night is. At eight weeks, with proper acclimatizing, chicks can handle freezing temps just fine.

It would help to know your location and climate so we can fine tune our advice to you.

 

[Cowhoney]

Do these three chicks comprise you whole flock? Do you plan on keeping the two cockerels? Of more concern is how the two cockerels, once mature, will overmate the pullet if there are no more than the one hen. They could even seriously injure or kill her with their focused attentions.

A healthy ratio is one rooster for around ten hens to prevent overmating of any single hen.

Back to the present. Unless the cockerels are being overly rough, if there are signs they might injure the pullet (beyond the horror of adolescent sex), I would leave them alone.

At two months, chicks are entirely equipped to go outdoors. You just need to start gradually with day trips until they get acclimatized to cooler temps.

If they are still under a heat lamp indoors, for heaven's sake turn it off. Chicks no longer need heat during the day at three weeks, and need no heat at night after five weeks depending on how cold the night is. At eight weeks, with proper acclimatizing, chicks can handle freezing temps just fine.

It would help to know your location and climate so we can fine tune our advice to you.

Goodmorning , I live in Eaglebay BC. Right now temperatures here are zero. The little chicks I have in doors are not under any heat light and have not been for a few weeks. I do put them outside during the days from about 8am-4pm inside the chicken run behind a safe fence line from my older hens. I would love to put them all together now I just worry my oldest hens will hurt them. There all not the same size yet. I do plan on keeping both roosters they have been together since hatched so far others then some minor sparring they get a long. I do worry about the over mating part though.

 

[azygous]

You can continue to let them outdoors in the run during the day. Just provide a heat source as an option on extremely cold days. They will choose to use it or not. It may surprise you when they ignore it most of the time.

Chicks can be integrated any time after they have been able to observe the adult flock to learn individual temperaments for a week. The secret to a successful integration is providing safe refuge and escapes for the chicks.

Your chicks are getting to be quite large, so simply providing horizontal and vertical escapes will assure their safety. Also of equal importance is their access to water and food since adults tend to bully chicks away from the feeders and not all chicks have the spunk to persist until they get to eat.

I have an elevated platform where my chicks get to eat in peace until they are holding their own in the flock.