featherpickingfool
Songster
- Mar 22, 2022
- 89
- 149
- 116
My silkie chicks are 4 weeks old. I am trying to integrate them into the flock. I got them when they were two days hatched. I got 5 Cream legbars the week after easter because the eggs my broody silkie Betty had being sitting on were bad. She tucked the legbars in and was happy. I soon found out that the legbars were going to be a constant challenge to keep in my yard, and ultimately I was gonna lose. So I did what any crazy chicken lady would do and bought the four silkies as soon as they got them in.
Betty was not willing to offer her help and I have been raising the little ones without a hens help. I had been keeping them in wired dog cage. And now I’ve tightened the hen house up to stop escapes, I’ve been letting them in a mostly confined area on the ground. I am still bringing the little ones in at night. The “coop” they are using is too small and with five silkies and five legbars, there is no way the little ones will fit until I take the legbars to my sisters.
So I have pest proofed the chicken area. I started with a coop made from rubbermade garbage can holder. There are too many birds now and so I enlarged the coop space by putting up a hoop coop. The flock has access to little coop through the hoop coop. I have the four week old silkies on the ground in a space that has a heater and food, but they can get out into the big chicken area. At night I still lock the big birds in the little coop.
I have a dog cage that I can lock at night. I was thinking about leaving them outside at night but they won't be able to go in little coop with big birds. Will they be okay with out a hen? How long will it take before they start being in the big flock? I plan taking legbars to my sister later this week.
This picture is a pano so it looks distorted.
Thanks for looking.
Betty was not willing to offer her help and I have been raising the little ones without a hens help. I had been keeping them in wired dog cage. And now I’ve tightened the hen house up to stop escapes, I’ve been letting them in a mostly confined area on the ground. I am still bringing the little ones in at night. The “coop” they are using is too small and with five silkies and five legbars, there is no way the little ones will fit until I take the legbars to my sisters.
So I have pest proofed the chicken area. I started with a coop made from rubbermade garbage can holder. There are too many birds now and so I enlarged the coop space by putting up a hoop coop. The flock has access to little coop through the hoop coop. I have the four week old silkies on the ground in a space that has a heater and food, but they can get out into the big chicken area. At night I still lock the big birds in the little coop.
I have a dog cage that I can lock at night. I was thinking about leaving them outside at night but they won't be able to go in little coop with big birds. Will they be okay with out a hen? How long will it take before they start being in the big flock? I plan taking legbars to my sister later this week.
This picture is a pano so it looks distorted.
Thanks for looking.
