Integrating 2 different groups of young chics together

[House of chic]

I have 3 groups of babies now. The first group is about 7 weeks old now and consist of 4 birds. The next are 3 birds that are about 4 weeks (3 weeks younger then the first) and I have 2 babies that are brand new. I had the first two groups in my laundry room all together in a big cardboard box up until about 2 1/2 weeks ago. They all got along fine and snuggled up together. A few weeks ago I had to move the oldest ones out into the barn because they had outgrown the cardboard box I had them in. I put them in a big metal water tough for horses so they have plenty of room. I didn't move the younger group because I didn't think they were ready for colder evenings yet. This week with the arrival of the new babies I have moved the middle group (now 4 weeks) out into the trough with the first group. My husband made a partition out of wood frame and chicken wire so that I could split the trough in half and separate the two groups for a few days until they get used to each other again. It has been about 4 days and when I try to put them together the older chicks chase and peck at the younger ones. I hate to keep them separated for much longer because half the trough will quickly become cramped for the bigger chicks. Looking for any advise that could facilitate this process. Getting worried because I will have to eventually bring in the 2 new babies and cant keep all 3 groups separated. HELP!!

 

[1muttsfan]

Unfortunately it can be hard to integrate chicks at that age, because they are so different in size and maturity. If you had quite a bit more space you might be able to do it more easily, but you may need to wait till the chicks are at least all fully feathered and more mobile before you put them in with the older larger birds.