Best way to integrate Momma and chick with main flock

[krista74]

oh, text sooo confusing....... do you mean 5 (one week old chicks) or 5 week old chicks?

If you have 5 week old chicks, they would be very close to the same size as the 4 wk old chick - put that batch together. But I think (if I am reading this right, you have a broody hen with 5 -1week-old chicks) That you have separate from the flock now.

So are you suggesting that the week old chicks I have, plus any that hatch in the next batch, be left within the main coop with no fences separating them at all? Yes, just leave them with the flock. The only dangerous time is about 20 hours where some eggs have not hatched yet, and some chicks dry off and explore. The exploring ones can be attacked by the layers while the mamma hen is trying to get the other eggs to hatch. Once the mamma has decided she is done with hatching eggs, she will leave that nest, and create a new nest on the floor of the coop. From that point on, she will furiously defend her chicks. If you watch, you will see that the mamma hen will come out of the coop with a skirt of chicks around her, she will stay to the outside of the flock, and her chicks will stay very close to her or on the far side of her away from the layers. Any layer that pecks at her chicks will get a severe thump in return. The layers get used to the chicks and there is no integration problem. At this time, the broody hen is VERY high in the pecking order.

do I just open the door and let him out? NOOOOOOO, you really cannot add that chick to the flock until that single chick is nearly full size. A single strange chick is the worst integration one can make. The whole flock knows this bird does not belong, and it is littler so everyone can peck and peck and peck. This chick will get all the beatings. Sometimes, if you have a bunch of chicks and you have hideouts and escape routes, you can add much smaller birds to an established flock, but a single bird will get trapped and take a vicious beating, maybe killed.

Now another problem, while I have had two hens hatch out eggs within hours of each other, and they shared the duties of raising them, I think there is a real possibility that the hen with chicks now, will be very aggressive toward the new chicks when they come, worse than the layers. This could be a mess the equivalent of two hormone enriched roosters. Hormones are powerful, and all about survival of the fittest, and making sure that "your" chicks get the food.


Ok, take this advice or not, up to you........ but this is what I think I would try. I would try putting the two broody hens together with their chicks (the ones that currently have chicks, 1wk olds and the 5 wk olds) in as big as space as you can manage, as close to the laying flock as possible, so that the laying flock can see but not touch any of the chicks. The thing is, is the little chicks will catch the 5 week old chick in size faster than anything else you have. I think the broody hen with the one week old chick will easily protect those chicks from the older chick and broody hen. Keep them together as long as possible. There may be squabbles, but they should settle down and become a mini flock.

In the mean time put the broody hen that is setting on eggs in with the layers. Make sure that the nest is small enough that others cannot lay eggs for her, check every so often to just keep her current eggs under her, mark them with a pen and let them hatch out with the layers. Lock the layers out for 12 hours while she hatches if possible, or separate her for just that day. She will handle that integration for you.

Then in about 6 week from the last hatching, I would have multiple feeders and waterers, pallets propped against a wall, multiple roosts, and other hideouts in the run and I would combine the whole works all at once at night, letting them out to free range first thing in the morning, and cross your fingers. Sheer numbers will keep anything from getting killed, (should be 8 head) cold weather makes chickens more tolerant of other chickens cause heat is heat, and by spring things should be settled down.

Good luck, Mrs K

My apologies, Mrs K, for not being as clear as I had hoped to be. To clarify:-

I have one 'main' coop (16ft long x 18ft wide) in which all the nest boxes are situated as well as the roosts. There are currently three laying hens and one rooster living in this space. These four birds also have permanent access to the only run (20m wide x 25 m long) and free range daily on our 2 acre block.

Within the main coop, I have sectioned off two separate pens - each one approximately 1m wide x 2 m long. In the first pen is a Broody hen sitting on 9 eggs. In the second pen there is a Momma Hen with five chicks who are all one week old.

Outside I have a small pen about 2m x 2m, and in that pen is a Momma Hen with a single, 4 week old chick. The chick was originally hatched within the main coop, but I moved Momma and the chick into this outside pen. The 'flock' (and by that I mean the 3 layers and 1 rooster from the main coop) go and sit by this pen on a daily basis, so the chick is not 'new' to them per se - they go and see it every day, albeit through the wire cage.

And yes, there is a cat - as in 'meow!' She is an outside cat, hard to catch, who would not appreciate being penned up for weeks on end. Sigh! I hope that's a little clearer for you. Oh, also, it is Spring here - we are in Australia

So, I originally put my Broody into a separate pen because the other hens were harassing her in her nest - she is low in the pecking order. I could move her out of there, but are any of my sectioned off areas big enough for the two Momma Hens and 6 chicks in total? And also, will the two Momma's fight each other?

I guess what I could do is create a doorway between the two inside pens, thereby doubling the space, and pop a Momma with her chick/s at either end. That way they will be all together, and the others can see them too.

I understand the concept of what you are suggesting - baffle the existing flock with numbers! So when I release them, I release them all together. The good thing is that the cat cannot get into the separated pens, so they would be safe (for now) too.

Thanks in advance.

Krista

 

[Mrs. K]

I too, have a broody hen now, such a strange time of year. But I had some time tonight, so when I went down, I got her out of the nest. I only do it once a week or so, so that I can make sure that no one has added eggs to the clutch. Too big of clutch and nothing hatches.

So while she was out, she is crabbier than a bear. She blows up at a layer hen, who just thought she was walking by, growls at the head rooster, who growled right back, but you could tell he was thinking 'what got in to her?" She dust bathed, terrorized the younger birds at the food bowl, they left, she stomped around and got a drink and a dust bath, puffed up the size of a badger at a young roo, who tried to puff up too, she whipped his ***. Another dust bath, another drink, shook off the dirt and went back to her clutch. It was almost like she dusted her hands off, saying, there, got that all straightened up.

I swear the flock tiptoes, when Butter is broody.

MRs K

 

[krista74]

I too, have a broody hen now, such a strange time of year. But I had some time tonight, so when I went down, I got her out of the nest. I only do it once a week or so, so that I can make sure that no one has added eggs to the clutch. Too big of clutch and nothing hatches.

So while she was out, she is crabbier than a bear. She blows up at a layer hen, who just thought she was walking by, growls at the head rooster, who growled right back, but you could tell he was thinking 'what got in to her?" She dust bathed, terrorized the younger birds at the food bowl, they left, she stomped around and got a drink and a dust bath, puffed up the size of a badger at a young roo, who tried to puff up too, she whipped his ***. Another dust bath, another drink, shook off the dirt and went back to her clutch. It was almost like she dusted her hands off, saying, there, got that all straightened up.

I swear the flock tiptoes, when Butter is broody.

MRs K

That is so funny! They really are characters aren't they? My current broody is all puffed out and growly, but when I pat her and do baby talk to her she settles down. Poor baby!

Anyway, in other news: Hubby and I joined the two mini pens within the main coop so it's pretty much half and half now. Existing flock on one side, two Mommas, all 6 chicks and the Broody on the other. It's the best I can do - there simply is no more room.

I have a couple more questions if I may....

1. Obviously I will be up at the crack of dawn and in the coop to ensure no-one gets hurt when they wake up and realise they are all together now. We moved them at dusk to minimise stress. Whilst we were moving them, I carried the chick and hubby carried Momma. He must have been holding her funny, because I noticed water spilling from her mouth as he was carrying her. He was squeezing her crop as he was carrying her so I'm 99.9% sure it was her crop emptying as he carried her. Could we have done any damage to her in carrying her this way?

2. Once I got Momma and her chick settled into their bucket (that they sleep in - we moved that too so they had a familiar bed) I noticed Momma was purring to her chick. What does this mean? Is it to settle the chick? To show stress? Because we hurt her in the move?

3. Is it ok to leave the Broody Hen on her nest in with all of the Momma's and babies? She seems to like watching the chicks and got very excited when one went in her nest with her! (By 'excited' I mean she looked - I don't know - interested in it.) I would move her out but the rest of the flock tend to pick on her and annoy her so much she leaves the nest. Thoughts?

Sorry to ask so many newbie questions. Hubby says owing chickens is meant to be fun and I'm making it hard work, but I really want them all to be happy and healthy.

Thank you for any comments.

Krista

 

[Bean789]

I found this thread due to a similar situation. I hope all has turned out well for you thus far. Let me know what happened??

In my situation, I have 7 less than year old laying pullets in one coop, 6 13 week old chicks along with 4 guinea chicks in separate coop but connected by wire separator so they all see each other daily. They all free range in their groups daily with an occasional squabble between a few of them.

I have another small coop with a small run area and will be purchasing a 2 year old Maran with a Silkie mix chick (just gotta have it, 4 weeks old) tomorrow to add to that coop. It is the chick I was after but the Maran is still laying quite often and I can always use more eggs (?) LOL

The older girls will go in their newly painted coop this weekend and I will add/revamp another coop to the other end this weekend as well. Then I will integrate the 13 week old chicks and guineas, again separated by wire within the run area between the coops.

The pullet breeds are Golden Laced Wyandotte, Barred Rock, Mottled Cochin bantam < > Easter Egger (not sure of their order) , Buff Brahma bantam, Black Orpington, and a Sultan. That is their pecking order as well.

Chicks are Barred Rock, Black Star, 2 Buff Orpingtons, Splash Silkie, Blue Silkie in their order, for the most part. The guineas mostly stay with the little ones and the only chick they like to pick on is the Barred Rock chick. The older pullets do not mess with the guineas.

Whew! Ok, now, how do I go about integrating the Maran with her chick to the other flocks? Should I put the Maran with her chick in the combined coop run area enclosed so the rest of them can't get to her and her baby? The small coop I planned for her will not fit well enough into the larger run area so I will need to build her an enclosure of some sort. Then there is the food and water issues between them all as well as the ability to let her chick out to free range and learn from her mama?