- May 24, 2012
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Hello!
Love this site, btw. New chicken owner here =)
Before I received my 15 baby chicks from a mail order, my wife and I were given 4 baby chicks that were around 3-4 weeks old. They are now roughly 10 weeks old, and have been out in the coop since we received them.
My 15 baby chicks are as of yesterday, 2 weeks old and growing up in a brooder I made with added chicken fencing on top to handle them staying in it a little longer than normal.
As soon as the babies are bigger and have all their feathers, I would like to add them to the coop with the 4 other chicks, again who are 10 weeks old. I suspect that will be in roughly 3 to 4 weeks? Which would put the 4 original chicks around 13 to 14 weeks old.
Is that going to be too early? Should I wait until 8 weeks? Thus making the 4 original at 18 weeks old?
My concern is the introduction. How bad is it going to be? Since the 4 older will be out numbered, will it not be as bad? I plan on free ranging all of them, and around the time I put them all together, the older 4 should be safe enough to handle free ranging.
However, my concern are the little ones getting out as well, and getting lost. As don't they need 2 weeks or so to learn their home? Or would it be shorter? Would the fact that the could follow the older birds help them out?
I have read putting them in at night, would be the best method...as making a divider in my coop and run isn't possible. Or putting them in while the other 4 free-range. Again, my concern with the free-range is the little ones getting out and getting lost!
I am leaning towards putting them in at night, as well as hanging up some distractions for the older birds.
Would that work?
Lastly, how long do the younger one's need to be in the coop before I can let them free-range? At 6 to 8 weeks, is it OK for them to free range? Judging from how big the original 4 were at that stage, they should be ok right?
Love this site, btw. New chicken owner here =)
Before I received my 15 baby chicks from a mail order, my wife and I were given 4 baby chicks that were around 3-4 weeks old. They are now roughly 10 weeks old, and have been out in the coop since we received them.
My 15 baby chicks are as of yesterday, 2 weeks old and growing up in a brooder I made with added chicken fencing on top to handle them staying in it a little longer than normal.
As soon as the babies are bigger and have all their feathers, I would like to add them to the coop with the 4 other chicks, again who are 10 weeks old. I suspect that will be in roughly 3 to 4 weeks? Which would put the 4 original chicks around 13 to 14 weeks old.
Is that going to be too early? Should I wait until 8 weeks? Thus making the 4 original at 18 weeks old?
My concern is the introduction. How bad is it going to be? Since the 4 older will be out numbered, will it not be as bad? I plan on free ranging all of them, and around the time I put them all together, the older 4 should be safe enough to handle free ranging.
However, my concern are the little ones getting out as well, and getting lost. As don't they need 2 weeks or so to learn their home? Or would it be shorter? Would the fact that the could follow the older birds help them out?
I have read putting them in at night, would be the best method...as making a divider in my coop and run isn't possible. Or putting them in while the other 4 free-range. Again, my concern with the free-range is the little ones getting out and getting lost!
I am leaning towards putting them in at night, as well as hanging up some distractions for the older birds.
Would that work?
Lastly, how long do the younger one's need to be in the coop before I can let them free-range? At 6 to 8 weeks, is it OK for them to free range? Judging from how big the original 4 were at that stage, they should be ok right?