How old to free range?

[Erin80]

Our silkies are 3 weeks right now, and still under a lamp all day and night.....however it is going to be very hot here this week (as high as 102, most days around 85)....I'm wondering if they are too young to go out with the older girls? I'm guessing they are, they still look quite small....and I don't know if they might get lost.

 

[ECMurray]

The only real concern (in my opinion) is if the younger chicks would get bullied by the older chickens. As far as getting lost is concerned, I wouldn't worry. Chickens who 'wander off' are usually just taken by predators. If your older chickens don't get lost, there's an even smaller chance your young ones would get lost. In your case, the weather isn't a problem. I wouldn't sweat about the matter . . . Let 'em free range

 

[rIrs roost]

I dont think that they are but they are getting close. If you take them out id stay out there with them to make sure that they don't get picked on. And when you do leave them out make sure that you fix them a place that they can run under to get away from the others. This is just my opinion though. Someone else may have a different opinion

 

[ECMurray]

Truth. . . . The pecking order always seems to get in the way of things, doesn't it? For some weird reason, my very young chicks and my older chickens got along fine after I formerly introduced them. So I don't usually think about that sort of problem,

 

[rIrs roost]

Truth. . . . The pecking order always seems to get in the way of things, doesn't it? For some weird reason, my very young chicks and my older chickens got along fine after I formerly introduced them. So I don't usually think about that sort of problem,

Yes it is I recently had a Broody hen that hatched one chick. All of my other chickens we're okay with it except my smallest hen. she tried to eat it every chance she could

 

[Erin80]

They are separated at the moment, but can see each other as it is just lattice that is separating them. They share the same coop, but the silkies have a lamp in their section and the big girls have the roosts. One of the big girls flew over the lattice last night, lol, and was in with the littles....she was more concerned about getting back to the other big girls than she was with the babies.