Adding Chicks or pullets to a flock

[gg706]

I am hopeful my experience will go just like that! My chicks are not hatching in the coop though. I got them from Tractor Supply, so I hope my flock accepts them.
My roo is pretty calm and gentlemanly as well. He takes very good care of his hens....My concern is I have 2 BLR Wyandottes.....They can be nasty! They are top boss and have even bucked up to the rooster. So as of now I am not sure who is running the coop. Not sure why the rooster puts up with it as he is just as big. ???

 

[jyurina]

We will try letting hem all into the yard together and see how it goes. I don't want to wait too long. My one hen is a bantam, she is the same size as my pullets who were hatched the first week of December. She is fierce but I would rather she set up dominance before they get much bigger than her, cause I know she won't back down.

 

[dgrover]

I keep my new chicks in a brooder that is in a separate part of my coop, so the older birds can hear the chicks as they grow. When the chicks have feathered and grown to about 6 weeks, I put up a temporary pen abutting the main moveable pen so they can acclimate to the others. This seems to work pretty well. I dn't totally mix them until they are at least 12 weeks. Also, I have had one Silver Wyandotte roo that would attack and kill a young roo. I am guessing this is his way of eliminating the competition. So I segregate him before allowing them to mix.