Integration--Part 1, now what?

[llombardo]

first group--2 girls, 1boy that are 4.5 months.

Second group--4 females that are 3 months

The smaller ones have been out there for over a month. At first in the coop, then moved to coop enclosure with a gate.

Last week I started letting the little ones out the last half hour of the day when the big ones were ready for bed. Then theityle ones go into a carrier and in the coop with the big ones.

About 2 this afternoon I decided to let the little ones out. Some chasing, some pecking. One of the little ones squeezed through the fence and ended up with the ducks. It was a tight squeeze, so in another week she won't fit. After about an hour I put them back. Then at about 7:30 I did the same thing. Slightly better, I used meal worms as bribery.

I completely figured out who the head hen was today, the boy seemed to want peace between them and did some blocking. He knows his name and I was able to call him off and give him treats for being a good boy--I swear just like a dog.

So instead of the carrier I put them all in the coop together for the first time. Very little squabbling. I checked on them and the four are more in the corner. Poor things look scared to death but are sleeping.

The smaller ones are very flighty and catch the eye of the bigger ones.

Should I have put them together in the coop? Am I traumatizing the small ones? Is it possible tonite in the coop could settle all of them down? Is is better to do this in steps or just do it and get it over with?

Help is needed here. Thank you.

 

[igorsMistress]

See how it goes. There will be squabbling but let your roo do his thing. They'll work it out. I didn't intervene because there hasn't been any blood. It's not always fun to watch though.

 

[HuskerHens18]

When I introduced my 3 month olds, it went similar to your experience. They all huddled in a corner, traumatized. Then in about 48 hours they were spread out among the floor, no longer scared. They are now 4 months old and still won't roost, but they aren't being bullied anymore and everything is peaceful.

I prefer to do it in steps, like putting them in a dog kennel in the center of the coop for a week, but honestly I think it's more for peace of MY mind. Because once I let them out of the kennel, there's still a bunch of pecking anyway to establish pecking order.

I think you're doing fine, obviously just monitor for injuries. Hopefully your top hen will cool it down in the next couple days.

 

[llombardo]

The thing with the hen is that she never bothered the other one in her group and today for the first time I saw her peck at her to move her away from her food.

I am not going to lie, I sat out there with a hose both times. Didn't have to use it the second time. I thought 3 of the little ones were brahmas, but it turns out two are and one is a favorelle(sp?) and she is very timid and sweet. I worry about her.

When I attempted this two weeks ago the boy pinned the favorelle and it freaked me out. He didn't attrmpt this, this time. I like him and I hope he keeps going in the right direction. I got these girls for him so he had more. He is not super bad with the mating and he doesn't push it with them.

 

[llombardo]

Oh and they seem to be finding the tightest spaces to get into. One got stuck half way into the rabbit run. I keep trying to block these areas but I can't keep up..lol

Then they sound like I'm killing them when I try helping them.

 

[llombardo]

My two groups

 

[HuskerHens18]

The thing with the hen is that she never bothered the other one in her group and today for the first time I saw her peck at her to move her away from her food.

I am not going to lie, I sat out there with a hose both times. Didn't have to use it the second time. I thought 3 of the little ones were brahmas, but it turns out two are and one is a favorelle(sp?) and she is very timid and sweet. I worry about her.

When I attempted this two weeks ago the boy pinned the favorelle and it freaked me out. He didn't attrmpt this, this time. I like him and I hope he keeps going in the right direction. I got these girls for him so he had more. He is not super bad with the mating and he doesn't push it with them.

She might be feeling her place in the pecking order is threatened by the new ones, so she is putting in extra effort to make sure everyone else knows, she's NOT going anywhere.
The hose will be your best friend, it's definitely mine when introducing. If I were you, I wouldn't be afraid to spray any and everyone. These are YOUR babies, so you need to let the flock know to back off.

I don't know your setup, but in mine I could shoo out my adults into the run, and lock the door with the chicks inside the coop.
This definitely DID help, it brought my chicks' confidence up and they had time to investigate the coop and get comfortable without the stress of adults. When I let the adults in at night, they were tired enough that for the most part they roosted almost right away, leaving the chicks alone.

 

[llombardo]

Day 2.

I got no sleep last night checking on them so this morning I gave the small ones the entire coop enclosure and the bigger ones were in the run. At about 4 I let them all out again. I bought a chicken activity center and put it together.

While they were all seperated still something made them go into high alert. Chickens talking, ducks quacking. I think it was a hawk. My Prince stood front and center talking away. I was pretty proud of him.

Once the smaller ones came out I noticed that Prince was trying to keep the peace. He was blocking quite a bit of pecking. He was running back and forth between the groups because the older girls are good at seperating the four and each take a group. Poor Prince didn't know if he was coming or going. There was about 2 hours without any pecking. The smaller ones found the sandbox for dust bathing and we're having fun. Prince periodically walked over and checked on them then walked away. Definitely the girls that are the trouble makers. Although one of the girls seemed worried about them at the end of the night. It was like she was trying to chase them into the coop. For now I catch them and put them in there. They still look miserable to me.

 

[Mrs. K]

Just seeing glimpses of your set up, but some hide outs, platforms, roosts in the run, can let both sides take a break from each other by getting out of sight. It will look more cluttered, but it makes it more interesting to the birds, they can get under, on top of, or behind something, rather than just a bare open run.

I think you through the worst of it.

 

[llombardo]

That's why I put the chicken activity center in there. It is crowded but it gives lots of places to perch and hide. They can still go around it or under so I'm okay with it for now. I think down the road I'm building a coop and attaching it to the run, then removing the one that is in there and giving that to the one rooster that is by himself.