Integration of Pullets

[jordienicki]

Hi there-

I have 2-7 week old pullets. A gold laced wyandotte and a gold seabright bantam. Today I will be adding a Blue Orpington about 5-6 weeks to my small(but mighty) flock. What is the best way to do this? I am new to chicken keeping but surely it cant be as simple as just putting the new baby in with my girls. Any advice on this is appreciated. THANKS!

 

[Mountain Peeps]

Welcome to BYC!

Ah yes, introducing new birds can be very challenging BUT, if done correctly, is very rewarding. Before you introduce the new birds, be sure to quarantine them for a couple weeks to make sure they aren't sick. (See here for more info https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/...often-underestimated-part-of-raising-chickens.) As for what is the best way of going about introducing them, I have found that the "see but don't touch" method is the most effective.

Instead of typing it all out here, here's a link to an article I wrote about this method of introduction.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/introducing-new-chickens-using-the-see-but-don-t-touch-method

Best of luck and welcome to our flock!