adding a new chick

[lwgosik98]

I have 5 hens and a small bantam rooster all over a year old I was thinking about getting one more baby chick this month is it ok to just add one more hen or would it be better to get more then one

 

[bobbi-j]

I have 5 hens and a small bantam rooster all over a year old I was thinking about getting one more baby chick this month is it ok to just add one more hen or would it be better to get more then one

I'm confused - are you looking at getting a hen, or a baby chick? You mentioned both in your post... It would work better to add an adult bird than a baby. You would have to keep a chick segregated until it got close to the same size as your adult birds.

 

[lwgosik98]

I'm thinking about getting a chick and raising it until its ready to be moved to my original flock of 6 my question is is it ok to just add one new chick to the flock

 

[bobbi-j]

I would get at least a couple,then. It's a bit easier to add more than one chicken to the flock. A lone chicken would get the brunt of the bullying while pecking order was being established. What about getting two or three that are already big enough to add?

 

[lwgosik98]

I would like to get chicks to raise them up how many you think I need ?

 

[Mrs. K]

No it is not good chicken management to add a single bird. I would suggest getting 3 to 6 chicks, and raising them together so that they get some chicken society. A single bird raised all by himself is not going to relate well to the flock concept when it comes time to add this bird.

By getting several, even if one dies, and sometimes they do, you can raise them up, and then sell them as older chicks or point of lay hens in at least a pair or a trio.

A single birds is just not good chicken husbandry.

Mrs k

 

[bobbi-j]

Since I don't know your set up, I really can't say how many you would need. How much space do you have? Do you have housing for two separate flocks until you can put them together? How about when you do put them together? What are your goals for your flock? I would probably get at least three, maybe four. That way if one dies, you would still have more than one to integrate into your current flock.

 

[lwgosik98]

I have a 15 by 9 foot run with a coop with 4 laying boxes my goal is too have 1 flock I just wanna add one more to the flock

 

[Mrs. K]

I do understand how you would like a final flock of 6 hens, however, it will be difficult to add just one. It would be better, to cull one of your current flock and add two new ones.

adding a single bird is the worst integration, adding a younger single bird, is really going to be pretty ugly. Often times the established flock will kill the single new comer. People have gotten this done successful, but a lot more people have had pretty terrible results. Chicken society can be pretty tough.

Do as you wish, but it is not a good set up.

Mrs K

 

[lazy gardener]

You did not say how big your coop is. That makes a huge difference whether you should add ANY birds. But, I agree with PP. You should be looking at getting adult birds, and adding at least 2, or getting 3 - 6 chicks, and housing them separately until they are full sized. Do you have an option of building on to the existing coop?