Integrating 2 rounds of chicks (different ages) to main flock. Brooding outside. Total newb.

[LovesteadMama]

Well, my chicken math has caught up to me and here I am with 9 & 10 week old chicks outside and chicks hatching in the incubator as we speak. I have my 9&10 week old chicks in the coop and my 4 older hens in the tractor right next to the coop. My hope is that I can integrate them and then raise these newly hatched chicks with a radiant heat plate in a dog kennel in the coop in the same space as them so they can get used to each other but with protection from them. I've never done any of this before. I was originally hoping to keep the kennel in the coop for the 9&10 week old chicks to have a refuge from the hens if needed but I think I'll need it for the chicks instead.

Does anyone have any tips for integrating the 3 groups and/or brooding outside? Thanks in advance!

Pictures are to show you the flock members, not the setup I currently have them in though I can take photos of that if it would help.

 

[Callender Girl]

I got a bad case of chicken math this year, too. I was not going to get ANY new chicks. I "accidentally" got three when I went to the feed store, and a month later, got five from a friend who works at an area hatchery.

Integration is so stressful -- probably even more so for me than for the youngsters because I want everyone to get along.

The weather has been unseasonably cool, so the older girls have been doing field trips out of the brooder to an outdoor pen, the idea being that the older free-ranging hens will get used to seeing them on the ground. With the exception of Bronwyn, a Very Jealous Speckled Sussex, everyone seems to leave them alone. She attacks the pen.

The trio is being brooded indoors, next door to the younger five. I am hoping that by hearing and seeing each other constantly, they will remember when they all have to live together in the under-construction coop -- that would NOT have been necessary to build while lumber prices are skyrocketing if only I had kept my "no new chicks" resolve.

I am planning to put the littlest ones in a wire dog kennel inside the coop for a few days since the older girls will move into the coop as soon as construction is complete -- hopefully, this weekend. Look, but don't touch has worked with mixed results in the past, so we'll see.

MOST of the newbies are full-sized or Bantam Cochins, who could be pretty mellow, so I have my fingers crossed.

Best wishes for getting your flock integrated!

 

[Cluckatar]

I really feel this one, I'm dealing with the aftermath of my own chicken math miscalculation. Mine included hatching twice in an incubator, buying "just a few" special chicks for my daughter's birthday, and now getting two more for a broody hen we didn't have the heart to disappoint. The broody is super happy, the chicks brooding in the bathroom are happy.... every other group is unhappy with being moved around. And the tractor coops I ordered are now three weeks delayed on delivery. I'm so stressed today over integrating groups two weeks apart in age. Today was a bad day of bullying for them, despite all the work at the beginning to get them used to each other.

I'm telling myself (and you!) that tomorrow will be a better day for all the chicks. And the day after even better. By Monday they will be acting like a workable group although I'm anticipating the littles will stick right with each other and avoid the others for quite some time. My bigger hens are circling the enclosure with the babies making happy cooing noises at them. It's just those darn teenager chicks causing the problems.

 

[LovesteadMama]

I got a bad case of chicken math this year, too. I was not going to get ANY new chicks. I "accidentally" got three when I went to the feed store, and a month later, got five from a friend who works at an area hatchery.

Integration is so stressful -- probably even more so for me than for the youngsters because I want everyone to get along.

The weather has been unseasonably cool, so the older girls have been doing field trips out of the brooder to an outdoor pen, the idea being that the older free-ranging hens will get used to seeing them on the ground. With the exception of Bronwyn, a Very Jealous Speckled Sussex, everyone seems to leave them alone. She attacks the pen.

The trio is being brooded indoors, next door to the younger five. I am hoping that by hearing and seeing each other constantly, they will remember when they all have to live together in the under-construction coop -- that would NOT have been necessary to build while lumber prices are skyrocketing if only I had kept my "no new chicks" resolve.

I am planning to put the littlest ones in a wire dog kennel inside the coop for a few days since the older girls will move into the coop as soon as construction is complete -- hopefully, this weekend. Look, but don't touch has worked with mixed results in the past, so we'll see.

MOST of the newbies are full-sized or Bantam Cochins, who could be pretty mellow, so I have my fingers crossed.

Best wishes for getting your flock integrated!

Why do they have to be so dang cute?! I have a few rhode island reds which are pretty aggressive and sassy so I'm concerned for these sweet little chicks. Let me know how your integration goes! And congrats on your new chicks

 

[LovesteadMama]

I really feel this one, I'm dealing with the aftermath of my own chicken math miscalculation. Mine included hatching twice in an incubator, buying "just a few" special chicks for my daughter's birthday, and now getting two more for a broody hen we didn't have the heart to disappoint. The broody is super happy, the chicks brooding in the bathroom are happy.... every other group is unhappy with being moved around. And the tractor coops I ordered are now three weeks delayed on delivery. I'm so stressed today over integrating groups two weeks apart in age. Today was a bad day of bullying for them, despite all the work at the beginning to get them used to each other.

I'm telling myself (and you!) that tomorrow will be a better day for all the chicks. And the day after even better. By Monday they will be acting like a workable group although I'm anticipating the littles will stick right with each other and avoid the others for quite some time. My bigger hens are circling the enclosure with the babies making happy cooing noises at them. It's just those darn teenager chicks causing the problems.

I was wondering if my older chicks would be an issue for my newly hatched chicks. The hens might (hopefully ) find the babies cute and take them under their wing (literally). But the chicks that are 2 months older maybe not so much. I think the size difference between the hens and chicks might help them to see them as less of a threat. I really didn't consider how stressful integration would be since I've never done it before. Good luck to you! Please keep me updated on how it works.

Ps: I'm SOOO ready to have the dusty brooder out of my house.

 

[Cluckatar]

I had to force the littles out of the coop into their run area again this morning. They were scared of the bully chicks. When they got down, they went to their "corner" again while the bigger chicks dug into the food and water. I snuck them their own snack in the corner, and on a whim put big chicken food down right outside of that spot. Two big hens came and ate with them peacefully, and their presence kept the teen thugs away for a bit. So, tiny win. I know they are thirsty and aren't being allowed near the water, but they will get there. I'm thinking of moving an extra water to that coop, but it's a whole ordeal, so we will see if that happens. It might literally be easier to swap all 19 chickens and put them in the coop with two water spots!

 

[Callender Girl]

Hey, a tiny win is better than no win at all! Good for you!

 

[Cluckatar]

How are your chicken integration projects going? My two week younger chicks are making progress at being part of the larger chick group. It's not harmony yet, but it's calmer. Two mornings in a row they came out of the coop with the others! Now if we can just get them to bed without crawling in the run :/

 

[LovesteadMama]

How are your chicken integration projects going? My two week younger chicks are making progress at being part of the larger chick group. It's not harmony yet, but it's calmer. Two mornings in a row they came out of the coop with the others! Now if we can just get them to bed without crawling in the run :/

Well, I put a dog kennel in the coop and used a bungee cord to attach the door to the side of the coop so the door is fixed slightly open (only large enough for the juvenile birds to fit through) so that way they can escape in there if they need to. I have the chicken tractor attached to the coop as a run. The older hens are used to being in the tractor (since I usually move it around daily and let them forage different areas in it) so they're mostly hanging out in there. I cluttered up the coop really well and provided 2 feeders and 2 waterers so I think that helps. Mostly they're staying in their own areas but I do notice the chicks are hiding in the corner a lot. I haven't noticed anything too aggressive and no one is injured. The older hens are puffing up at the chicks some and of course the pecking order is being established. All in all I'm thinking it's going alright! Also, look at these sweet fluffballs! They just hatched the other day. And the turkeys will be hatching any day now! I may even wake up to little poults stumbling around. If I can even sleep! I only check the incubator 5 times an hour.

 

[LovesteadMama]

How are your chicken integration projects going? My two week younger chicks are making progress at being part of the larger chick group. It's not harmony yet, but it's calmer. Two mornings in a row they came out of the coop with the others! Now if we can just get them to bed without crawling in the run :/

That's great! They're finding some sort of unity among them! How many days have they been together now?