Thank you. My orig flock are mutts, so I splurged on eggs for my daughter's 4H project. Was it bad for me to pick MY fav breeds for HER project? By selling the extra chicks, she ended up covering the cost of expenses. That part made DH happy. Let's face it; he's doomed anyway. She's picked up my incubation addiction. She's already planning for next year's project & designing her experiment.
I had good luck introducing new chicks to the flock at about 8-10 weeks old. At that point, the size diff isn't too great & the hens seem to know they're young, so the bullying isn't so bad. I also made sure to have their run/coop next to the flock for a couple weeks before the introduction. (it's the standard "Look but don't touch" period.) Never try to introduce one single bird. It's stressful & they need a buddy. The day before, I allow the chicks to explore their new run/coop while the flock is in the yard. I then put them back into the baby coop until everyone falls asleep. Under darkness I place the chicks on the low roost in the big coop. By the time the chickens wake up, they've already spent the night together. I make sure to do it on a weekend, so I can be out there to check frequently throughout the next day. I've never had major blood or injury using this slow intro approach. Yes, the babies will get bullied a little but everyone knows they're at the bottom of pecking order. The babies will simply stay clear of the older ones. They'll need their own feed & water area, but one coop is easier to maintain than 2. The first week or two will take a little extra time to make sure everyone finds their way to back to the coop each night, but it gets easier. Eventually, the two mini flocks start to mingle as one. If your older birds are less than a year old, it will likely be very simple. If your older birds are less than 8 weeks, then all the extra steps may not even be necessary.
Temp coops: Dog crate, dog house, baby play yard, old rabbit/ferret cage, child's play house, dog run, etc. Most of mine came from Thrift stores or even better to find curb treasures. Some disinfectant & a power washer can work miracles. You'll want to hold on to that temp home b/c you may have a future need for a broody hen box, quarantine cage, or even a brooder.
