Integrating 2 chicks into flock of 5--nighttime

[SpaceyTracy]

I have two chicks I'm trying to integrate into my flock of 5 hens. They've been in the run in a look-but-don't-interact mode since I've had them (almost 4 weeks, and they were 2 weeks old when I got them). I'm not sure what the next step is. The chicks started out in the dog crate and then expanded to part of the run. Lately they have been ignoring the cozy enclosed space I made them in the crate in favor of roosting on available perches at night, which is good I guess, except when the perch is on the edge of the window (on right in pic below) and there's a driving rain. Meanwhile the hens are snuggled inside their coop. The coop is a small prefab thing with one roosting bar and I can't think of how to subdivide it. Do I risk putting them in there together?

Also, daytime: I would do a trial integration in the run with the hens, but the hens don't hang out there except to eat this time of year... they're out in the much larger, fenced grassy yard. Do I let the chicks out into the yard with its big exposed expanses? A week or so ago they jumped out of their area and I found them in my attached garden. Don't know what happened but I suspect they were chased and snuck under the garden gate, then didn't know how to get back. They haven't wanted to leave their space again. I had sealed off a bunch of areas in their space that I didn't want them to get stuck in when they were younger. I could now open them up to be hiding places/escape hatches, and make a couple of little openings in the mesh fence that separates their space. Maybe trust them to not go out into the big yard?

 

[3KillerBs]

I'd open things up and let them explore. Just make sure they can get back to their safe place when they need to.

 

[SpaceyTracy]

Chicks cautiously venture out in the daytime, keep their distance from the hens. They still don't want to go into the coop at night. Just trust them to do this at some point? I don't love that they're not inside with that extra layer of security, though they are inside a hardware-cloth-enclosed run.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Chicks cautiously venture out in the daytime, keep their distance from the hens. They still don't want to go into the coop at night. Just trust them to do this at some point? I don't love that they're not inside with that extra layer of security, though they are inside a hardware-cloth-enclosed run.

Thankfully your coop is one of the more usable type of prefabs - do you know how big yours is?

Assuming it's not super tight inside I'd push the chicks into the coop at this point as it's been about 10 days? They may not roost which is fine, but just to get them in the habit of going in.