Chicken integration....How long does this take??

[AUChick9202]

I have 6 chickens....4 are 12-weeks (there is a rooster in this bunch) and the other 2 are 9-weeks. About a month ago, I put the little ones into the yard/coop with the larger ones. There was the initial pecking/chasing of the younger ones that I expected during the integration process. I put out two feeding/watering stations in the yard to make sure that the younger ones were never excluded. There are also plenty of hiding spots in the yard for the younger ones to find refuge. Well, it has now been a month and I still feel like I have two flocks of birds.....4 older and 2 younger. They have made a little process....the rooster doesn't run them out of the coop at night anymore. On the roost at night, there are 4 at one end and 2 at the other end. The rooster still runs the little ones off the main feeder in the morning and the older birds still chase the little ones away if they get too close in the yard. I still find the younger ones hiding in the yard to avoid the bigger ones. Will I ever just have one flock of 6 chickens?? How long does this integration process take? I am new to chickens, so any advice is greatly appreciated

Thanks!

 

[Ruth Ann]

Well I have two groups of chickens. 8 are from last spring...and 8 from this spring(16 weeks).
They live together but seperate.
They share the sleeping area and run...but they do it in two seperate groups.
Itis like two flocks. Sometimes they stand in the same area...but they aren't one group yet.
Been together like this for over two months now.
Hope one day they will all lilke each other.

 

[imthedude]

each time i have done this, it takes about a week for things to settle out and the little birds to not be terrified of the bigger ones. my strategy for the last two integrations has been to let each flock roam our 3/4 acre backyard and come in contact with each other. it seems to work pretty well, but there will still be skirmishes a month or two after the fact as they work out the pecking order.