Integrating 8 week Pullets with 18 week hens

[mldlm]

I have two 8 week old chicks (one speckled Sussex and one black australorp). I am ready to integrate them with my four 18 week old hens. I am curious abou the best way to do this. The two have been out with the older four for nearly 3 weeks now. During the day, they are in the run in a separate cage area and at night they are in the coop but also separated by a cage. Kind of the look but don’t touch method. I am just not sure when to let them mix in the run and coop. Also, how? Thanks! UPDATE: pics..
the run and the coop. The cage for the little ones can also be seen, which I will remove once they are all integrated. I only have the two chicks to integrate. I had four, but two turned out to be cockerels and I can’t have them where I live, so I gave them to a local farm that was kind enough to take them in.

 

[Mrs. K]

Divide and conquer:

• What you want to avoid, is mixing them with more older birds than younger birds and putting the younger birds into a strange place. Now even though you have had them in the run, it is still strange to them. Just the crate is familiar.
• You do need to create safety zones where as the littles can escape to, and either the bigs can't get through or it seriously slows them down. I have had very good luck with pallets up on low bricks. Just enough space the littles can run through it.
• Or a one way gate, a mesh or woven fencing, lifted off the ground just a couple inches off the ground. Again the littles go under easily, the bigs do not. Put a feed bowl in there

Once you have that set up:

• Put two or three of your older birds where you are keeping the younger birds. Then let the littles run around the area. I often start with them in a safety zone, and sit there with my coffee. When they finally get brave enough to come out, I mock chase them back into the safety zone, and it only takes once.
• If your crate is not big enough for your older birds, let them out of the run/coop into your back yard. Lock the littles in the run, let the bigs in as close to dark as you can.
• observe and check on them several times a day

Sometimes you will just get a wicked one that is just heartless: if so, put her in the crate. Some times adding one or two birds to the chicks, let the bluster die down, add another big bird. Do not how ever do it the other way around, adding a single chick to an established flock will not work, and may cause the chick to be killed.

Mrs K

 

[SandyRiverChick]

How big is your setup? Do the big's ever free-range? I've always done some of what has already been suggested with integration fencing that I made to split my run in half yet the wire at the bottom of one panel I can bend up just enough that the little can get under it but not a big.... Slowly I open it up more and more so that's its still a little's safety zone on one side but a big could actually get in there too. The reason this works so well for me is that I do it when the big's side of the run has the door open for free-range coming and going. The bigs are not near as interested in the littles when they have 5acres to roam. This pic isn't great but it's the wire under the horizontal fence board separator that I can bend for the 8weeker to get under. You can see my run is the chain link with the temporary separation fence in the middle and the reason you don't see bigs is that the chain link door is open and they could care less about the littles.... I leave it up until the little's aren't so little anymore and then there is mostly peace. I just integrated 5 little's with 6bigs a few weeks ago.

 

[mldlm]

How big is your setup? Do the big's ever free-range? I've always done some of what has already been suggested with integration fencing that I made to split my run in half yet the wire at the bottom of one panel I can bend up just enough that the little can get under it but not a big.... Slowly I open it up more and more so that's its still a little's safety zone on one side but a big could actually get in there too. The reason this works so well for me is that I do it when the big's side of the run has the door open for free-range coming and going. The bigs are not near as interested in the littles when they have 5acres to roam. This pic isn't great but it's the wire under the horizontal fence board separator that I can bend for the 8weeker to get under. You can see my run is the chain link with the temporary separation fence in the middle and the reason you don't see bigs is that the chain link door is open and they could care less about the littles.... I leave it up until the little's aren't so little anymore and then there is mostly peace. I just integrated 5 little's with 6bigs a few weeks ago.View attachment 3182785

My run is an 8’ x 8’ area attached to the coop via a door (the coop used to be a shed). The coop is 10’ x 7’. I will try to remember to get a pic of the run and coop tomorrow. No free ranging, we are in the middle of the woods, lots of predators.

 

[mldlm]

Divide and conquer:

• What you want to avoid, is mixing them with more older birds than younger birds and putting the younger birds into a strange place. Now even though you have had them in the run, it is still strange to them. Just the crate is familiar.
• You do need to create safety zones where as the littles can escape to, and either the bigs can't get through or it seriously slows them down. I have had very good luck with pallets up on low bricks. Just enough space the littles can run through it.
• Or a one way gate, a mesh or woven fencing, lifted off the ground just a couple inches off the ground. Again the littles go under easily, the bigs do not. Put a feed bowl in there

Once you have that set up:

• Put two or three of your older birds where you are keeping the younger birds. Then let the littles run around the area. I often start with them in a safety zone, and sit there with my coffee. When they finally get brave enough to come out, I mock chase them back into the safety zone, and it only takes once.
• If your crate is not big enough for your older birds, let them out of the run/coop into your back yard. Lock the littles in the run, let the bigs in as close to dark as you can.
• observe and check on them several times a day

Sometimes you will just get a wicked one that is just heartless: if so, put her in the crate. Some times adding one or two birds to the chicks, let the bluster die down, add another big bird. Do not how ever do it the other way around, adding a single chick to an established flock will not work, and may cause the chick to be killed.

Mrs K

Thank you! You always have such good information!

 

[Mrs. K]

Why, thank you.

 

[SandyRiverChick]

My run is an 8’ x 8’ area attached to the coop via a door (the coop used to be a shed). The coop is 10’ x 7’. I will try to remember to get a pic of the run and coop tomorrow. No free ranging, we are in the middle of the woods, lots of predators.

6 chickens in 8x8 would concern me... Any chance you can set up an extension for them to roam knowing they'll come in to roost at night? I respect that's it's a personal choice to take chances on predators. I'm in the middle of the woods of Mount Hood Oregon and on a River. Lot's of predators but they all get locked up tight at night....

 

[mldlm]

6 chickens in 8x8 would concern me... Any chance you can set up an extension for them to roam knowing they'll come in to roost at night? I respect that's it's a personal choice to take chances on predators. I'm in the middle of the woods of Mount Hood Oregon and on a River. Lot's of predators but they all get locked up tight at night....

My run…And coop. The cage in the coop and run will be removed once I have integrated the young ones to the older ones.

How big is your setup? Do the big's ever free-range? I've always done some of what has already been suggested with integration fencing that I made to split my run in half yet the wire at the bottom of one panel I can bend up just enough that the little can get under it but not a big.... Slowly I open it up more and more so that's its still a little's safety zone on one side but a big could actually get in there too. The reason this works so well for me is that I do it when the big's side of the run has the door open for free-range coming and going. The bigs are not near as interested in the littles when they have 5acres to roam. This pic isn't great but it's the wire under the horizontal fence board separator that I can bend for the 8weeker to get under. You can see my run is the chain link with the temporary separation fence in the middle and the reason you don't see bigs is that the chain link door is open and they could care less about the littles.... I leave it up until the little's aren't so little anymore and then there is mostly peace. I just integrated 5 little's with 6bigs a few weeks ago.View attachment 3182785

I added my pics to my original post now

 

[mldlm]

So, the room is good for 6 hens, right?

 

[Idaho Chicken Bungalow]

I let my one 8-week-old chick out two days ago after two weeks of look but don't touch. Here's the story... She was going to be with two others when she was shipped but the other two didn't make it, she made it alone. Her shipment of three was to replace the shipment I got of the now 16-week-old girls which one ended up being a rooster. If you're still reading this: The lone 8-week-old is holding her own, but I spend my day worrying. Water all over the yard, different feed stations and plenty of places for her to hide. The year-old girls (my layers) don't pay too much attention to her it's the two 16-week old's that are mean to her.