Hi, I am getting 17 chicks (mixture of orpingtons/rocks/etc) first week of April, and I'm interested in getting silkies as well. If I wait until summer or next spring to get them, will they adjust just fine to living with my large chickens? Or am I better off brooding them together?
Bantams raised in conjunction with large fowl do better than when introduced as adults - in my experience.
I hatched out some Silkies here, and timed it so my order of Standard chicks would arrive at the same time. I brooded them together from the start. I haven't had any issues whatsoever.....they do everything the bigger chickens do, including going outside in the snow! I also had an existing flock of Standards, and integrated the Silkies and the newer Standards by the time time chicks were 3 weeks old, will full integration by 4 weeks. My Silkies have no idea they are supposed to be "delicate" and need special care. I brood all of my chicks outdoors in a wire pen within the run.
