Flock Introductions - How few is too few?

[Svyetii]

Hi everyone!

I purchased my first flock of five poulets in September and it looks like I have a rooster. While he’s beautiful and I’d love to keep him, roosters are not allowed in the city, so we’ll have to find a new home for him (or maybe process him?? ). With that in mind, I’d like to add another chick or two to the flock. I know it’s best to add them in groups, but I really can’t fit more than two or three more. So my question: should I buy two or three chicks this spring and try to introduce them from a young age, or would it be better to buy one or two older birds? Which would be more likely to result in a successful and easier integration? My current flock is comprised of a lavender and buff Orpington, an Easter egger and an olive egger. All are between 11 and 12 weeks old.

Secondarily, the chicks are unvaccinated and fed unmedicated feed (there had been some question about their vaccination status early on and I received confirmation only later that they were unvaccinated). Is there any issue with me introducing a new chick(s) that are vaccinated?

I appreciate any input or advice you might have.

Thanks!

 

[AOrchard]

It sounds like your pullets are not laying yet, and have not grown up in adult hens yet? Pullets are typically much more agreeable to newcomers than adult hens. So if yours aren't laying yet, I would suggest checking Facebook and craigslist or however you connect with other local chicken keepers and get two pullets now.

Otherwise:

Introducing adults will probably integrate faster but with more squabbling, introducing chicks won't truly integrate for months, but probably less fighting.

Typically, chicks will defer to the hens, so they will just run away from the hens if pecked and be their own little subflock of chicks, until they become adults, and then they will properly join the flock. Two chicks is okay, three is better. They likely will remain separate and do their own thing until they are adults. This can work fine and be fairly unstressful if you have plenty of space for the chicks to get away from the hens, and can provide two feeders and waters for a while.

Introducing new hens will squabble a lot more initially as they sort out their pecking order and the new hens try to hold their own, but typically will resolve within a few weeks.

With such a small flock, it will be very dependent on the four personalities you already have.

 

[3KillerBs]

Here are some useful articles on integration:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/my-coop-brooder-and-integration.74591/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/introducing-new-chickens-using-the-“see-but-don’t-touch”-method.67839/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/adding-to-your-flock.47756/

Integrating a single bird is generally said to be the most difficult, so a pair is probably better.

Also, integration takes extra space above and beyond the usual guideline of 4 square feet per bird in the coop and 10 square feet per bird in the run.

 

[Svyetii]

It sounds like your pullets are not laying yet, and have not grown up in adult hens yet? Pullets are typically much more agreeable to newcomers than adult hens. So if yours aren't laying yet, I would suggest checking Facebook and craigslist or however you connect with other local chicken keepers and get two pullets now.

Otherwise:

Introducing adults will probably integrate faster but with more squabbling, introducing chicks won't truly integrate for months, but probably less fighting.

Typically, chicks will defer to the hens, so they will just run away from the hens if pecked and be their own little subflock of chicks, until they become adults, and then they will properly join the flock. Two chicks is okay, three is better. They likely will remain separate and do their own thing until they are adults. This can work fine and be fairly unstressful if you have plenty of space for the chicks to get away from the hens, and can provide two feeders and waters for a while.

Introducing new hens will squabble a lot more initially as they sort out their pecking order and the new hens try to hold their own, but typically will resolve within a few weeks.

With such a small flock, it will be very dependent on the four personalities you already have.

That’s helpful information , thank you. You are correct, the chicks are just barely three months old and not yet laying. I am in the process of building a new permanent coop for the girls, but it won’t be ready for another week or two. They are currently in an A frame chicken tractor. Would it make sense to try and get two new chickens of roughly the same age as my current hens and quarantine them in the chicken tractor once I move the other hens to their new coop? Or would that still create too much risk of possible disease exposure for my current flock? I assume the new chickens still need some space to roam while in quarantine ? I could also keep them in a makeshift pen in my garage I suppose.

As for their personalities, being a new chicken owner it’s a bit hard to say. The four girls all seem fairly docile compared to the roo. My buff Orpington is the most curious of the bunch and was always the first to come to me and explore or jump up on my lap. The Easter egger is an eager follower and also quite friendly. She will also sometimes jump up onto me. The lavender Orpington is also friendly and curious, but more mild mannered than the first two. She’ll hang back just a bit sometimes. Finally, the olive egger is the shyest of the bunch and more likely to hang on her own while out in the yard when they’re not all laying together. Coincidentally , I had to switch out one chick from the group in the first week I had them, and replaced it with the olive egger , and I’ve always felt she was considered a bit of an outsider as a result (I perhaps niavely thought they were too young to notice that much). They all get along very well despite this, but there are some tussles that involve the olive egger from time to time.

 

[Svyetii]

Here are some useful articles on integration:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/my-coop-brooder-and-integration.74591/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/introducing-new-chickens-using-the-“see-but-don’t-touch”-method.67839/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/adding-to-your-flock.47756/

Integrating a single bird is generally said to be the most difficult, so a pair is probably better.

Also, integration takes extra space above and beyond the usual guideline of 4 square feet per bird in the coop and 10 square feet per bird in the run.

Thank you. These links are helpful

To your comment on the extra space, how much is generally recommended? And are you referring to extra space in the coop once they’re introduced, or space outside when they’re separated?

 

[rosemarythyme]

To your comment on the extra space, how much is generally recommended? And are you referring to extra space in the coop once they’re introduced, or space outside when they’re separated?

On the second question, both.

On the first, there's not a set number to shoot for. "More" is better. The main reasons are because more space lets you add extra clutter https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-cluttered-run.1323792/page-6#post-25037140 and feeders to enable new birds to hide and eat in peace, and because chickens do have a personal bubble - newcomers may not be welcome in that space. Chickens that are in the process of integrating need roughly 5' between them (or clutter that blocks line of sight) to pass by without triggering a chase.

 

[aart]

I would wait until spring and get another batch of day old chicks,
then you should have eggs all next winter too.

I am in the process of building a new permanent coop for the girls

Build in a separate space for brooding chicks, so you can do this:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/

 

[3KillerBs]

To your comment on the extra space, how much is generally recommended? And are you referring to extra space in the coop once they’re introduced, or space outside when they’re separated?

Yes.

It's important to note that all these numbers are *guidelines* rather than hard-and-fast *rules*, but for chickens' physical and social health these are commonly accepted as minimums under most circumstances:

For each adult, standard-sized hen you need:

• 4 square feet in the coop (.37 square meters)
• 10 square feet in the run (.93 square meters),
• 1 linear foot of roost (.3 meters),
• 1/4 of a nest box,
• And 1 square foot (.09 square meters) of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation, preferably located over the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

Integration requires more space than that because the current flock will want to drive the invaders out of their territory. In general, the more space you can reasonably give your birds the better.

One technique I was taught is that during the integration period you should feed your birds along the dividing line so that they get used to eating together.

Also, because you're in a hot climate you should consider building an Open Air style coop, which combines the coop and run into one unit. Here are some articles about heat and ventilation and some sample Open Air coops.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/hot-climate-chicken-housing-and-care.77263/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/repecka-illustrates-coop-ventilation.77659/


https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/jens-hens-a-southern-texas-coop.75707/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/my-positive-local-action-coop.72804/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/california-living.68130/

I'm still working on the article for my Open Air coop, but it's featured in the hot climate article.

 

[AOrchard]

Would it make sense to try and get two new chickens of roughly the same age as my current hens and quarantine them in the chicken tractor once I move the other hens to their new coop? Or would that still create too much risk of possible disease exposure for my current flock?

That's probably what I would do! The tractor would also allow the two groups to see each other, which is makes integration easier.

There is a low risk of the new birds carrying anything, especially if you can get someone else's extra hatchery pullets (auction or swap birds seem highest risk in my experience). I think this is reasonable quarantine. If you would be absolutely devastated to lose anybody, than you could increase quarantine by keeping them on separate sides of the house and always care for your current birds first, than go to the new ones (change clothes, shoes, and wash up if you have to go back to your current birds after).

 

[Auntiejessi3]

I would wait until spring and get another batch of day old chicks,
then you should have eggs all next winter too

This right here! In the 2 1/2 years I've had chickens I've only gone 1 winter (it was actually only 2 months, lol) without eggs because I add to my flock every Spring/Fall.