I put little GRacie in with the big girls today....

[ladybug99]

I was feeling a little sorry for my single chick Gracie.. she is just about 3 weeks old now and almost totally feathered. She looks so lonely in the brooder all by her self. So I set up the dog cage in the corner of the coop. She has water, food, her fuzzy purple friend....And she is doing fine!!!! It is about 80 degrees today so it was the perfect time to do this. My big girls aren't even paying much attention to her, but she is wide eyed and checking everything out. I wasn't able to find a chick her age and the day old chicks they had at the feed store were so tiny so she has been alone by herself for a week.

This is my first time introducing babies into the flock.... how long is she going to have to stay in the dog cage??? I think it is the best I can do for her right now.. but at least she is with her own kind

 

[bburn]

For quite a while I think. Her size is still too small. Maybe in a few weeks you can take her out and one of your gentlest hens and let them free range with you right there with them. Maybe a temp pen in the yard out of chicken wire and you a lawn chair. Intergration is a long process at best. One chick is even harder because they need a friend.

When the day comes and you can do it make little places in the run where Gracie can get under and into that the bigger ones cannot. I put two POL pullets in with the MOB this year and tried the sectioned off place in the run and they 'flew the coop' over into the big run. It was hard on them for a while, and they are still at the bottom of the pecking order but they are fine now. I did things like leave a plastic tote by the fence and lean a piece of tin on something so they could get under it. They could get behind the tote to get away.

Pecking order is ugly at best and it helps if you give them all the tools they need to get through it.

 

[NottinghamChicks]

No matter how much time she has to acclimate they will probably make her miserable when you release her so I would get anothe little one the same age to release with her otherwise their pecking and chasing may just be too much. She has no idea how to associate with another chicken and it's going to be difficult

 

[ladybug99]

I am keeping my eyes out for chicks her age...checking craigs list and I asked at the feed store if any one returned any I would take a few. Chickens are hard to come by here I guess.. you can only buy them at the feed store and they go like wild fire when they come in. I figured I would put her out with the girls because she was by herself.. she actually seems a bit happier.. very curious about everything.. she can see out the pop door and the human door. She is roosting and My broody seems a bit intrested in her, she left her eggs the other day, they were not fertile so I threw them out.. but she is looking in the pen and cooing at her. We are going to have to take things slowly... I do have another batch of eggs in the incubator so she may have to go in thier new coop with them... but they are not due to hatch till May 20th

 

[NottinghamChicks]

I'm happy that she at least has "tv" to watch now, at least she occupied

Good luck and hope all goes well for you and Gracie