Adding New Members to the Flock

[MarkBeltran1]

Hello All;

I plan on adding one or two younger hens to the flock. I may be raising them from chicks, and I'm concerned that they'll get picked on, so I won't let them near the adults until they've reached maturity. Is it possible that they'll be accepted into the flock and in the same coop? Or is this not a good idea?

 

[Rakaiachick]

Yes it's doable. Just make sure they are around the same size. You could use the look bit don't touch method if you have the room or able to accommodate as this works really well. They get to know each other at a distance and older hen can't hurt younger pullets.

 

[Skyleen13]

I would love some advice as well. I had a surprise hatching of 7 chicks by a sneaky hen. However, once they were out she just stopped being their mom. Ran away from them & the other hens started picking on them as a result. Had to separate them from my adult flock to save them. One is very weak & might not make it. I have the ability to divide my run in two so they can interact safely through a fence once the babies are big enough but I’m not sure how old they should be before fully merging the two flocks.

 

[thepick4uchicks]

Hello All;

I plan on adding one or two younger hens to the flock. I may be raising them from chicks, and I'm concerned that they'll get picked on, so I won't let them near the adults until they've reached maturity. Is it possible that they'll be accepted into the flock and in the same coop? Or is this not a good idea?

What kind of chickens do you have and or intend to get to add to the flock as in breed? This means a lot as far as temperament goes and how achievable this goal is.

 

[thepick4uchicks]

I would love some advice as well. I had a surprise hatching of 7 chicks by a sneaky hen. However, once they were out she just stopped being their mom. Ran away from them & the other hens started picking on them as a result. Had to separate them from my adult flock to save them. One is very weak & might not make it. I have the ability to divide my run in two so they can interact safely through a fence once the babies are big enough but I’m not sure how old they should be before fully merging the two flocks.

You can do some test runs and since yours are part of this flock originally a quarantine is really not necessary to do since you will need to keep them apart for awhile I don’t guess but they definitely don’t need to be mixed for a test run until the chicks are able to defend themselves and have sense enough to run to safety on their own. You can devise a safe place in the coop that only they can fit into when you do allow them to try to join the flock and that way when you do if the other hens start to pick at them the chicks can run back to their safe place right away and be protected. You can do this with hour supervision and without you getting involved necessarily but watching only you can see what actually takes place. If the chicks have to head for the hills you know it’s not going to work. It’s going to have to be at a later date when they are bigger or they are going to need a second coop if the later date doesn’t work.

 

[rosemarythyme]

If you're starting with chicks, switch up your thinking - far easier to integrate them early, than to wait until later. This does require some preplanning, and of course ample space (which all integration needs), but it takes advantage of the fact that chicks are small and fast, and that hens are less likely to see them as a threat while they're small.

This is my article on how to set up for it. There's links to several others that employ some similar techniques in it as well: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/short-on-time-recycle-a-prefab-brooder.73985/

 

[aart]

I plan on adding one or two younger hens to the flock. I may be raising them from chicks, and I'm concerned that they'll get picked on, so I won't let them near the adults until they've reached maturity. Is it possible that they'll be accepted into the flock and in the same coop? Or is this not a good idea?

Might depend on how big your coop and run is.
Integration works best with lots of space.

If you're starting with chicks, switch up your thinking - far easier to integrate them early, than to wait until later. This does require some preplanning, and of course ample space (which all integration needs), but it takes advantage of the fact that chicks are small and fast, and that hens are less likely to see them as a threat while they're small.

This is my article on how to set up for it. There's links to several others that employ some similar techniques in it as well: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/short-on-time-recycle-a-prefab-brooder.73985/

Ditto Dat!!!

Here's how I do:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/

 

[Mrs. K]

I agree - I have incredible success by introducing chicks at 3 weeks, and this summer in May, it was warm enough I added chicks at 1 week of age. Gave them a safe place, a safety zone, let the others see them for 3 days. Lifted the fence so that the chicks could fit under it, and let them decide when to explore, when to retreat. In 2 days, they were eating under the feet of bigger birds.

Way easier than introducing adult birds.

Mrs K

 

[Ridgerunner]

I plan on adding one or two younger hens to the flock. I may be raising them from chicks, and I'm concerned that they'll get picked on, so I won't let them near the adults until they've reached maturity. Is it possible that they'll be accepted into the flock and in the same coop? Or is this not a good idea?

People on this forum integrate new chickens all the time in widely different circumstances. Some integrate mature adult chickens, some integrate really young chicks. Often it goes really smoothly but sometimes it's a disaster. There are a lot of different factors that go into that. Things like the personality of the individual chickens involved, flock make-up, how many new and old chickens you have, how much room you have in the coop and outside, how the coop is laid out inside (especially roost area), how the outside space is laid out, how you manage them (when are they locked up or free to merge), and many other things. The more we know about your unique situation the more likely we can suggest things that might help you.

There are always exceptions, but in general if you are integrating a truly mature hen or hens, integration is faster. It also tends to be more violent. Sometimes it is so smooth you don't notice a problem, but often they have to fight their way into the pecking order. In my experience size isn't very important, maturity is. Mine are typically mature enough to do that after they start laying.

If you have enough room and patience, integrating chicks is often less violent but they take longer. Until they reach maturity mine tend to stay far away from the adults day and night. They need enough room to be able to do that. If they are shoehorned into a small space where they can't avoid the adults it can get deadly pretty fast. Depending on what your facilities look like, they may need to sleep separately for months. Some people don't have the facilities or patience to do that.

You mention raising one or two chicks. Chickens are social animals. It's harder to raise one chick by itself than it is two. I usually suggest a minimum of three chicks. If one dies you still have two so they still have a buddy. Usually they don't die but it can happen. It's also usually easier to integrate two or more than a single chick or chicken. Since they are social animals, a single chicken will probably want to be close to the others, which might get it beat up or worse. If they have a buddy they can hang separately from the adults as they slowly work their way into the flock.

My brooder is in the coop, the chicks are raised with the flock. I usually do about 20 at a time, way different to your one or two. Usually by 5 weeks mine are totally merged with the flock. They don't mingle that much with the adults, though some might get closer than others. They tend to stay in a sub-flock, well separated from the adults during the day. They don't sleep on the main roosts with the adults until they mature. Instead they have other places to sleep. When they mature enough to move to the main roosts with the adults it's usually not violent at all.

I don't know anything about your situation. It may be better for you to wait until they are fully mature to try to integrate them. To me that would be the last choice, but your circumstances are different to mine. The more we know what you are dealing with and what you have to work with the more likely we can offer suggestions that suit your unique situation.

 

[Mrs. K]

good point on at least 3 chicks!