Just a quick hello, I'm from Kingston which is about 20 minutes outside of central London and I have the pleasure of owning two lovely Cochin Bantams. I am an absolute newbie to this scene but I am finding it extremely rewarding already. This site is very much a god send to me as when I've been stuck/unsure it has given me answers prior to registration so thank you. One quick cheeky question whilst I'm typing; Can I introduce a very young chick to a pair of 7 month old Cochin bantams and can the breed of the chick be different? Many thanks, James.
To answer your question, no you shouldn't introduce a lone young chick in with older hens. Ideally it should be roughly the same size as the ones you are putting it in with and even more ideal is to introduce more than one so the newcomer doesn't get relentlessly picked on.
Welcome to BYC! You have come to the coolest place on the internet for chicken knowledge. I started with chickens last summer and the people of BYC have been great. This year I have tried hatching and buying chicks for even more chickeny joy. Please visit my BYC Page for my blog links that you may find informative or amusing. The birds should be the roughly the same size and able to fend for themselves. "Pecking order" is not a euphemism.
