Combining chicks and older pullets - help!

[snoggle]

I feel like my fifteen 4-week old chicks (slow growing breeds) are just too big and stinky to stay in the basement brooder much longer. So earlier today I put them in the coop with my other chickens (four 3-month olds). They have a 22 x 5 foot run, but I usually let the 3 month olds free range in the yard. Though with the chicks out there, I wanted to keep everyone in the run for now.

To make a long story short, one of the 3-month old pullets has been pecking at the chicks, which caused two of the chicks to escape the run. I didn't realize the chicks were still small enough to get out of the run. I don't mind a little pecking order behavior, but I'm afraid she'll kill or injure them.

So, my options are:

1. Put the chicks back in the brooder for a couple more weeks until they are bigger. Being a few weeks older/bigger might keep them in the run, but I'm assuming the older pullet will probably still pick on them until they are full grown. I can't keep them in the brooder until they are full grown.

2. Combine them all in the coop during the night (assuming they'll sleep and the hen won't pick on the chicks), but separate them during the day (free range the bigger chickens, but not the little guys). Will she leave them alone at night?

I don't want to free range the chicks until they are at least a couple of months old.

Any other ideas?

 

[SuperChickenDude327]

As soon as they fall asleep, you can put the little ones up. I'm fortunate: me and Dad made a nice big coop for my chicken Scruffy when her feather-loss was downright catastrophic. We now keep the chicks in there at night, and when day comes we kick out the adults and let the chicks roam free in our pen. They're 6 weeks old.

 

[SuperChickenDude327]

As soon as they fall asleep, you can put the little ones up. I'm fortunate: me and Dad made a nice big coop for my chicken Scruffy when her feather-loss was downright catastrophic. We now keep the chicks in there at night, and when day comes we kick out the adults and let the chicks roam free in our pen. They're 6 weeks old.

 

[snoggle]

Well, I combined them all for the night, and so far so good. I'll run out there as early as possible to let the big ones out to run around the yard. Hopefully I can do this for a few weeks until the little guys are big enough to free range or at least go in the run with the others.