Combining chicks???

[lacy111693]

Hey all! So I got 3 welsummers Sunday and decided to get some buff orps and EE's today. One of the Wellies seems to be picking on the new younger chicks. (They are less than a week apart in age) She grabs their wings and pulls relatively hard and the poor little things start screaming while she is dragging them by the wing. Do I need to separate them???

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

You could try a wire divider for a day or so, that happens sometimes, I've even had some in the same batch do that, it can help to lower the heat a bit too, sometimes being too hot will cause aggressive behavior.

 

[azygous]

There is also behavior modification. Chicks learn incredibly fast if you discipline it when it is engaging in the bad behavior.

I've had very good results by simply poking an offending chick on the back with my finger each time I see it go after another chick.

Try it. It works amazingly well. Just be careful not to poke so hard you knock the chick off its feet.

If these chicks are under four weeks old, they usually integrate very quickly when you introduce others in the same age range.