Coop Addition and Chick Integration (get a beverage... this might be long)

[Dogs Cows Chicken]

Hi! I'm new and thought it would be fun to start off with a long post. I hope you agree.

I'm attaching image of the plans the coop showing the original and the addition.

Here's the situation:

• I have a solo hen, Lucy (+/- 18 month old Leghorn), who lives in the original section. She's been alone in her coop since we lost her BFF in April.
• There are 5 five-week-old chicks in the brooder in my guest room.
• The addition will be move-in-ready in a few days.
• We live in West Texas and temps are in the triple digits.

The dilemma:

• I can't decide how to best move everyone to the coops.
• I'm hyper-concerned about predators once the babies are outside chirping.

My Thoughts:

• I should move Lucy and all of her amenities to the new section and lock her out of the old section for at least a week so she knows the new part is her new home.
• After the week, I can move the chicks to the old section where they can have the entire coop and run without being caged in a wire crate.
• Lucy will be able to go outside (under supervision) because she'll have the only exterior door.
• The babies can be in their area for... Well, indefinitely, until everyone has gotten to know each other through chicken wire and I think Lucy is ready to blend.
• After integration, the door between runs can stay open and Lucy can choose the coop she wants to sleep in.

Concerns:

• Both runs are lined in chicken wire only. Only the doors to the coops will have hardware cloth. (ASAP, everything will be hardware cloth)
• Daytime temps reach up to 108°; nighttime can be low 70s.
• The old run has a metal roof. The new run has a chicken wire roof. Pine trees provide shade 95% of the day. Both runs have excellent cross breeze.
• If I wait until the babies are 18-20 weeks old to put them all together, will it be harder for Lucy since I'll essentially be introducing HER to a new FLOCK VS. the other way around????

What are your thoughts on the plan? What am I missing? Is my time frame okay? Should I move the chicks to the garage for a week to re-acclimate them to the heat?

Let me know if I've overlooked a critical detail and I'll provide it.

The plans aren't exactly to scale, other than the new coop, which is 6'*6'. The rest is guestimated.

Thanks in advance for your input.

Under Construction:

 

[FloridaChook]

TARPS TARPS TARPS. I live in Florida and it's been mid 90s with 100s for the feel like temp. the more shade and shade over the shade the better. I freeze water bottles and set them out for them with the addition of iced water and/or electrolytes. the tarps really make a difference, even in humid climates. I'd recommend a supervised through the wire or raw in the feather. it's in the chicks favor since there are more.

 

[Dogs Cows Chicken]

TARPS TARPS TARPS. I live in Florida and it's been mid 90s with 100s for the feel like temp. the more shade and shade over the shade the better. I freeze water bottles and set them out for them with the addition of iced water and/or electrolytes. the tarps really make a difference, even in humid climates. I'd recommend a supervised through the wire or raw in the feather. it's in the chicks favor since there are more.

Tarps are generally useless in the west Texas wind. The compound is in full shade from 8-10:00 then all day after 12:45ish.

I keep foot baths out and drop in frozen water bottles throughout the day for Lucy. I also water with electrolytes and prebiotic (alternating gallons).

The chicks and Lucy will be separated by chicken wire in the run when I take the chicks out. I take the chicks to Lucy's yard in a wire crate a few evenings a week while she's foraging, so they are already seeing each other.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Is the old section getting demolished or will the flock be able to use both once everything is finished? Only asking because I don't see a reason to lock Lucy into the new area, she'll learn to use it (if she wants) if you leave everything open to her to decide.

I'd move the chicks out as soon as the area for them is safe and ready for use and plan for integrating earlier, not later, because...

If I wait until the babies are 18-20 weeks old to put them all together, will it be harder for Lucy since I'll essentially be introducing HER to a new FLOCK VS. the other way around????

Yes you'd be making it a single bird introduction into a flock of near POL birds. Whereas a single adult vs a group of 6-ish week olds is a much better integration situation.

Have the chicks in a see but no touch set up for 1-2 weeks, then clutter up the run and let them out - you look to have a good amount of space but you want clutter to visually break up the space and provide hiding areas so the chicks can more easily get away from Lucy if needed. Have at least 2 feeders placed apart with clutter in between so Lucy cannot guard food.

 

[Debbie292d]

Is the old section getting demolished or will the flock be able to use both once everything is finished? Only asking because I don't see a reason to lock Lucy into the new area, she'll learn to use it (if she wants) if you leave everything open to her to decide.

I'd move the chicks out as soon as the area for them is safe and ready for use and plan for integrating earlier, not later, because...

Yes you'd be making it a single bird introduction into a flock of near POL birds. Whereas a single adult vs a group of 6-ish week olds is a much better integration situation.

Have the chicks in a see but no touch set up for 1-2 weeks, then clutter up the run and let them out - you look to have a good amount of space but you want clutter to visually break up the space and provide hiding areas so the chicks can more easily get away from Lucy if needed. Have at least 2 feeders placed apart with clutter in between so Lucy cannot guard food.

I love this idea! Especially the dual feeders/waterers and clutter.

For clutter, ask if you need ideas. This forum has tons.

 

[rosemarythyme]

For clutter, ask if you need ideas. This forum has tons.

Whoops.. I forgot to link the clutter thread!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-cluttered-run.1323792/page-6#post-25037140

 

[Dogs Cows Chicken]

Is the old section getting demolished or will the flock be able to use both once everything is finished? Only asking because I don't see a reason to lock Lucy into the new area, she'll learn to use it (if she wants) if you leave everything open to her to decide.

I'd move the chicks out as soon as the area for them is safe and ready for use and plan for integrating earlier, not later, because...

Yes you'd be making it a single bird introduction into a flock of near POL birds. Whereas a single adult vs a group of 6-ish week olds is a much better integration situation.

Have the chicks in a see but no touch set up for 1-2 weeks, then clutter up the run and let them out - you look to have a good amount of space but you want clutter to visually break up the space and provide hiding areas so the chicks can more easily get away from Lucy if needed. Have at least 2 feeders placed apart with clutter in between so Lucy cannot guard food.

I just wrote a massive response and touched my tablet wrong as I went to post and lost it all. Bad words were said. I'll rewrite Shortly.

 

[Themellowyellows]

Im curious, does Lucy talk since she is alone? Does she try to interact with anything? Since she is alone im judt wondering.

 

[Dogs Cows Chicken]

Thanks for asking!

Lucy is not especially talkative. I'm always surprised when she's got something to say beyond her enthusiastic greeting when I visit her in the morning, afternoon and evening. We spend about an hour on "safari" every evening and she's pretty quiet.

Having said all that ... She's been doing something new 4 of the past 5 mornings. For about 5 minutes, right at sunrise, she crows 3-5 times.

I haven't determined the reason, but it started just after she was first exposed to the chicks when I took them outside in a dog crate, which I've done about 5 times in the past week and a half... B of those times we've gone to the chicken yard.

She has a mirror in her coop, but I don't think she's interested in it. She DOES interact with every spider and grasshopper she meets! LOL!!

 

[Dogs Cows Chicken]

Is the old section getting demolished or will the flock be able to use both once everything is finished? Only asking because I don't see a reason to lock Lucy into the new area, she'll learn to use it (if she wants) if you leave everything open to her to decide.

I'd move the chicks out as soon as the area for them is safe and ready for use and plan for integrating earlier, not later, because...

Yes you'd be making it a single bird introduction into a flock of near POL birds. Whereas a single adult vs a group of 6-ish week olds is a much better integration situation.

Have the chicks in a see but no touch set up for 1-2 weeks, then clutter up the run and let them out - you look to have a good amount of space but you want clutter to visually break up the space and provide hiding areas so the chicks can more easily get away from Lucy if needed. Have at least 2 feeders placed apart with clutter in between so Lucy cannot guard food.

Trying again...

The original section of "the compound" is going to remain as is, with the original exterior door opening into the new run instead of the chicken yard. I made the decision to keep the original wall and door in place in case someone needs to be separated from the flock for behavior issues or injury, and for future integration needs.

The reason for moving Lucy to the new section is three-fold:

1. When I move the chicks outside, they will have free run of the coop and run I put them into, rather than being caged in a wire crate to separate them from Lucy;
2. The new section has an exterior door that opens into the chicken yard. Lucy and I go on "safari" every evening in the chicken yard or other parts of the property, where she has personally cultivated compost heaps and a decent sprout garden. Moving her to the new section and the chicks to the old section means that I don't have to corral and contain the youngsters in order to let Lucy pass through to the exterior door.
3. I figure that it will be less stressful for Lucy if she has time to adjust to the new accommodations before the chicks move in, rather than losing her usual spot to unexpected, noisy neighbors at the same time.

I've already started giving Lucy treats only in the new section of the run.

Once the integration is complete and everyone is settled, the door between runs will probably be kept open and the original coop kept closed so that it's always available in case of an emergency that requires separating one or more of the flock. It will also prevent having to kick someone out of their sleeping spot if/when I add to the flock again.

When it's time for the actual contact integration, I plan on moving the chicks to the new coop to roost after they have all gone to sleep. I hope to have all of the chicks roosting by then. They are currently all roosting in the brooder at night. I hope that translates easily in the coop.

I have introduced Lucy to another hen, Roxanne, in this fashion after a week of Roxie being caged inside the run. (Roxie was given to me after we lost Ethel, Lucy's BFF. I was informed that Roxie had an injury, but the injury was far more severe than I was told. Ultimately, we had to make the hardest decision for her as there was nothing we could do to ease her pain or offer a suitable quality of life. ) Lucy did very well waking up with Roxie on the roost behind her. I don't know if I should do this with all of the chicks on the same night or over the course of a few nights.

As for "clutter," each run will be set up with food (probably three feeders), water, foot baths (for the heat), dust baths, swings, tree stumps & branches for perching on or hiding behind. I attached the plans showing all of these amenities as they are in Lucy's current run and my tentative plans for them in the new run in my previous incomplete reply, but I'll include here to save chasing it down. I also added pics of the entire compound I took earlier this evening. The amenities are cluttery, but I'll check out the link to clutter ideas.

There is sufficient space under the roosts in both coops to provide nooks and crannies for the littles to get away from Lucy. I don't know how to provide an escape route for Lucy in case she's the one who needs it.

The chicks will be "seeing but separate" from Lucy through chicken wire when they move into the coop. The completion time for the construction will dictate how soon the new section is ready to go. It should be finished before Monday. If I give Lucy a week to acclimate to the new section, the chicks can move in at the cusp of six and seven weeks, making them at least eight weeks old after two weeks of "see but no touch." That should be okay, shouldn't it?

I think I have addressed everything you mentioned. I think we're in agreement, aren't we?

What do you think about acclimating the chicks to the heat by moving them to the garage for a week? It's slightly cooler there than the coop and slightly warmer than the guest room (which is significantly warmer than the rest of the house). Or should I just continue to carry them outside in the crate (which I'll do anyway, even if they are in the garage)? Moving them to the garage would be easier than keeping them in the house, but I'd prefer to do what's best over what's easiest.