Help with new chicks

[Amanda2765]

Hey everyone, I need help on a chick question. I bought 6 silkie chicks that were born on April 12th. I then was going to add 2 more naked neck from a different breeder one week later. Well she “lost” one of the chicks and gave me one 4 weeks older and one a few days old. So the older one was born March 23. So I have 3 different aged chicks 1 born March 23rd, 6 April 12th, 1 born April 20th. Sorry for the long story but the older one is an a**hole. It jumps around on the smaller ones all the time and pecks at them. I have 3 older silkies (6 months old females) outside in a coop. Would it be bad of I stuck it out there earlier than the other ones? I live in Wisconsin where it still gets to 30 degrees at night. Or what should I do??? They all are still inside under a heat lamp. (Except obviously the 3 adult hens in the outdoor coop)

 

[aart]

BTDT.
Had to keep them in 3 separate brooders side by side, see no touch.
Then took them out to a day pen to help integrate...if one got nasty, they went back inside. Took a couple-few weeks of that before they all got along well enough to move to the coop partition to start integration with the main flock...even then had the youngest group in a crate with a tiny door/opening for a week or so.

Now I don't get disparate aged chicks and brood them all in the coop from one week after hatch.

You've got some Chicken Juggling ahead of you....hope you have lots of space and crates.

These basic tips may help....
Integration Basics:

It's all about territory and resources(space/food/water).
Existing birds will almost always attack new ones to defend their resources.
Understanding chicken behaviors is essential to integrating new birds into your flock.

Confine new birds within sight but physically segregated from older/existing birds for several weeks, so they can see and get used to each other but not physically interact.

In adjacent runs, spread scratch grains along the dividing mesh, best if mesh is just big enough for birds to stick their head thru, so they get used to eating together.

The more space, the better. Birds will peck to establish dominance, the pecked bird needs space to get away. As long as there's no copious blood drawn and/or new bird is not trapped/pinned down and beaten unmercilessly, let them work it out. Every time you interfere or remove new birds, they'll have to start the pecking order thing all over again.

Multiple feed/water stations. Dominance issues are most often carried out over sustenance, more stations lessens the frequency of that issue.

Places for the new birds to hide 'out of line of sight'(but not a dead end trap) and/or up and away from any bully birds. Roosts, pallets or boards leaned up against walls or up on concrete blocks, old chairs tables, branches, logs, stumps out in the run can really help. Lots of diversion and places to 'hide' instead of bare wide open run.