help! brooding problem

[Mamabear28]

hi so i have 7 5 week old keets 6 4 week old chicks and 5 4 week old ducklings . i just got 6 day olds chicks from tsc and went to put them in with the rest and my ducklings attacked them i put them next to them in another cage. how long till i can put them in with the rest? is this just the pecking order being fingered out someone please help me

 

[JaeG]

6 day olds are far too young to be put with other chicks/ducklings that are a month old. They will need to be similar in size before they can mix and you will need to have the two groups where they can see each other but not hurt each other (through wire) for at least a week before trying them together. Are the keets Guinea Fowl? If so they will need to be separated from your other birds when older as I'm pretty sure they can be aggressive towards chickens.

 

[lazy gardener]

I would not put ducks with chicks to brood b/c of the differing eating behaviors. Ducks are super messy, and tend to make the brooder too wet. They also grow much faster. Your new chicks need heat, while I'm assuming that you've weaned the rest of the birds off heat. Best case scenario would be to brood those new chicks in the coop in a fenced off style brooder with a heating pad, so they can see their future flock mates without getting pecked on. In a couple of weeks, you can open the brooder area up with a small door that they can fit through but the older chicks can't so the littles can come and go as they want, but can escape the bigger birds. I have not raised keets. Have done ducks, but never housed them with chickens.