How long does it take to introduce your new chicks to your flock?

[Burger Bob]

First off let me start by saying how glad I am to have joined this website. It seems like I may be able to learn all about what I need to know about raising my backyard chickens. Thanks for all the advice and answers I have gotten so far. It does however looks like it will take me some time on learning how to navigate myself around on this site, but I am sure it won't take me long because of the interest I have in raising myself a decent size flock for myself and my father!!!

I am living in a suburban subdivision at the present time and I am only allowed to have a total of 12 birds total. I have 6 Rhode Island Reds, 1 being a rooster which I didn't want because of the close proximity of my neighbors and I also have 6 Americaunas with 1 being a rooster also.

My question is I will be moving to a place with 5 acres of land where there are no restrictions and everything is already set up to have a nice flock of birds. My father had a total of 150 fowl, including chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys.

My question is how long does it take to introduce a new set of chicks to my current 12 I have now without them being torn up by the others? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Burger Bob

 

[kbky1973]

I've been told 8 weeks old is the magic number.after moving the new ones into the coop for 2 or3 weeks with a separate area , where the older chickens ,can see them get used to them . Without being able to get to them. This is the normal set age.Don't try this at any younger or older age. 8 weeks old.

 

[azygous]

I've made a study over an eight year period of the best way to integrate chicks into a flock, and I wrote an article about the best way I've discovered how to do it. It's linked below this post, the second one of four articles.

Basically, I raise the chicks in the run alongside the adults, the chicks are accepted as flock members from the beginning. At age three weeks, after the chicks have observed the behavior of the individuals in the flock over that period, I let them start to mingle, using the panic room method.

By age five weeks, the chicks are fully integrated into the flock and are also living in the coop with the older chickens.

My article has pictures and gets into why this is such an advantageous way to raise and integrate chicks. It's accomplished by five or six weeks of age, far sooner than the conventional way of handling integration.

 

[Burger Bob]

Thanks for the tips and knowledge from you guys. It is greatly appreciated and one of the factors I will need to know as I add to my current flock of birds I have now.

Burger Bob