Adding chicks to chicks

[Sassyjane87]

Good morning, I have (4) two week old bantam chicks, and tomorrow I am receiving (6) day old polish chicks. Will they be okay to put together in the same brooder? The 2 week bantams are feisty. Any tips?

 

[BarnyardChaos]

I wouldn't, not yet. The day-olds need to learn to walk, eat and drink - and they are far too young to defend themselves. The bantams, despite being so small, will very likely pick on them mercilessly. In nature, the mother hens would defend their babies against other chicks or chickens. They don't have mother hens, except for you.
I'd wait until they are a few weeks old, and then introduce them cautiously.

 

[Sassyjane87]

I wouldn't, not yet. The day-olds need to learn to walk, eat and drink - and they are far too young to defend themselves. The bantams, despite being so small, will very likely pick on them mercilessly. In nature, the mother hens would defend their babies against other chicks or chickens. They don't have mother hens, except for you.
I'd wait until they are a few weeks old, and then introduce them cautiously.

Thank you for the advice.

 

[DuckyGaze]

I'm also wondering about how to add 2 day olds to a group of 1 week olds. Will the ones that are 1 week pick on the newly hatched chicks?

 

[alpacasandchicks78]

I'm also wondering about how to add 2 day olds to a group of 1 week olds. Will the ones that are 1 week pick on the newly hatched chicks?

I would wait until the 2 day olds get a bit bigger and start to feather out. I have a 4 day old and one week olds and he's still not quite big enough. I have bantams though.

 

[DuckyGaze]

I would wait until the 2 day olds get a bit bigger and start to feather out. I have a 4 day old and one week olds and he's still not quite big enough. I have bantams though.

Thank you. I'll set up another light and cage for the younger ones. I wasn't sure if I was being too cautious. Thanks again.

 

[mcdze]

when theyre 1-2 days old theyre not coordinated enough to avoid bigger chicks .. i good strategy ive used is just a 6-8" high strip of hardware cloth to seperate them for a couple days .. little chicks wont be able to bail over it .. i wouldnt try to combine groups with too large a disparity in age though, dont know what the actual limit would be, but id think 10 days maybe 2weeks .. more than that may be problematic with day olds even hardened off with the wire seperator, theyd just be alot further behind and over 10 days the older ones would likely be able to scale over the seperator lol ..

 

[alpacasandchicks78]

when theyre 1-2 days old theyre not coordinated enough to avoid bigger chicks .. i good strategy ive used is just a 6-8" high strip of hardware cloth to seperate them for a couple days .. little chicks wont be able to bail over it .. i wouldnt try to combine groups with too large a disparity in age though, dont know what the actual limit would be, but id think 10 days maybe 2weeks .. more than that may be problematic with day olds even hardened off with the wire seperator, theyd just be alot further behind and over 10 days the older ones would likely be able to scale over the seperator lol ..

I didn't think about hardware cloth. That's a good suggestion. I'll be purchasing some myself the next time I'm out. I've got two brooders going right now.

 

[Debbie292d]

Sorry, I'm way too late to let you know that yes, you most likely could have.

For anyone else wondering about putting tiny chicks with two week old chicks, we did it with 3 two-week-old feisty Speckled Sussex and a -1 day old silkie chick. They got along great. They were a bit clumsy around the little one the first couple of days, but soon the little one learned to stay out of their way. They always cuddled and slept together.

Edited to add, set the heat for what the younger one(s) need. The older ones will move away from it.

 

[Holdthechicken]

Sorry, I'm way too late to let you know that yes, you most likely could have.

For anyone else wondering about putting tiny chicks with two week old chicks, we did it with 3 two-week-old feisty Speckled Sussex and a -1 day old silkie chick. They got along great. They were a bit clumsy around the little one the first couple of days, but soon the little one learned to stay out of their way. They always cuddled and slept together.

Edited to add, set the heat for what the younger one(s) need. The older ones will move away from it.

I agree. I did this a month ago; two day-old chicks and two three week olds. It wasn’t ideal, but my older ones were gentle and very nice to the littles. They all get on great now. Pic of when we initially brought the little babies home and let them meet. I will say, we did have ample space, I wouldn’t have done it if it was close quarters.