Introducing new flock members

[Melontine]

So it's finally that time, my nearly seven-week-old babies are moving outside and getting to meet the older hens. All of them are Buff Orpingtons. (Six chicks, five are pullets, one might be a cockerel. Four to five hens, one is missing tonight but may -hopefully- be back tomorrow. One hen has been broody for a few days now.)
To prepare, I expanded my chicken run and set up a new coop inside.
(This one from tractor supply, I painted the brown parts blue though to match my other coop)

The chicks are locked inside this new coop, separated from the adult hens but they'll be able to see and interact a little through the screens and get used to one another.
I moved them out there in the evening so there hasn't been any fuss so far, but we'll see what happens when the chicks start leaving the coop.
The chicks were promptly freaked by the complete change of scenery. They don't have their heating plate anymore, I took that away a week or so ago. I don't think they'll be too cold, they're all fully feathered now and it's been quite warm out recently.
I plan to give them at least a week before letting them all out together.
I don't remember when I started letting the adult hens free range, I think I might be getting a little over-eager to see them all together. The chicks are still maybe half the hen's size and I've heard you're supposed to wait until they're more equal.

What should I watch for at this stage? How long until I can throw everyone into the yard together?

 

[Raining Rage]

Yes. Wait til your little ones are as big as your hens. Size matters in this situation. You don’t really need on worry about everything else. As your chicks grow older, it'll hopefully get better.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Generally you keep the chicks penned separately for a week or two so everyone gets a good look at them. Than I usually start supervised mingling for another week or so until I feel comfortable leaving the chicks out unsupervised for the day. I generally lock chicks separately at night for another month or two before leaving everyone to their own business.

How big is your main coop and run?

 

[Raining Rage]

Generally you keep the chicks penned separately for a week or two so everyone gets a good look at them. Than I usually start supervised mingling for another week or so until I feel comfortable leaving the chicks out unsupervised for the day. I generally lock chicks separately at night for another month or two before leaving everyone to their own business.

How big is your main coop and run?

My coop can fit up to 10 chickens in it. My run is a 7x4x3. My chickens sometimes free range.

 

[Henriettamom919]

Generally you keep the chicks penned separately for a week or two so everyone gets a good look at them. Than I usually start supervised mingling for another week or so until I feel comfortable leaving the chicks out unsupervised for the day. I generally lock chicks separately at night for another month or two before leaving everyone to their own business.

How big is your main coop and run?

This is our method, too. My big girls are in one coop and just next to that is a large fenced garden that acts as their run and also training to free range (we've let the weeds go nuts around the edges and use two of the raised flower beds for sprouting uneaten seed for them to scratch at.) The littles have a smaller coop in the garden.

My big girls can see them but not interact and we've started supervised treat time with oats and fruit for all. There is still some chasing but the pecking has stopped. Everyone will integrate to a walk in coop around July but I'll keep roosting dividers up for the first month or so.

Make sure when you do combine them there are new things to do to help take the focus off the littles; hanging corn on the cob or cabbage heads, logs to perch on, pile of shavings with seed treat scattered inside, etc.

Good luck!!

 

[aart]

I've started integrating at about 4 weeks old, after brooding in coop for 3 weeks.
Goes much smoother than waiting til 'equal sized'...but takes some setup.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/

Still follow the....
Integration Basics:

It's all about territory and resources(space/food/water).
Existing birds will almost always attack new ones to defend their resources.
Understanding chicken behaviors is essential to integrating new birds into your flock.

Confine new birds within sight but physically segregated from older/existing birds for several weeks, so they can see and get used to each other but not physically interact.

In adjacent runs, spread scratch grains along the dividing mesh, best if mesh is just big enough for birds to stick their head thru, so they get used to eating together.

The more space, the better. Birds will peck to establish dominance, the pecked bird needs space to get away. As long as there's no copious blood drawn and/or new bird is not trapped/pinned down and beaten unmercilessly, let them work it out. Every time you interfere or remove new birds, they'll have to start the pecking order thing all over again.

Multiple feed/water stations. Dominance issues are most often carried out over sustenance, more stations lessens the frequency of that issue.

Places for the new birds to hide 'out of line of sight'(but not a dead end trap) and/or up and away from any bully birds. Roosts, pallets or boards leaned up against walls or up on concrete blocks, old chairs tables, branches, logs, stumps out in the run can really help. Lots of diversion and places to 'hide' instead of bare wide open run.

 

[Ridgerunner]

The chicks are still maybe half the hen's size and I've heard you're supposed to wait until they're more equal.

I do not believe that size matters. I've had two different broody hens wean their chicks at three weeks, which is early. Four to nine weeks is more common. I regularly integrate 5 week old brooder raised chicks with the flock. Those chicks are nowhere near the same size as the rooster or hens.

How long until I can throw everyone into the yard together?

There are some things that are important. As OldHen asked, what size, in feet, are your main coop and run? With practically all behaviors room is often a critical factor. It certainly is in integration. Until my chicks reach a certain level of maturity (not size, maturity) they will almost always avoid the adults. There are always exceptions with living animals (anything can happen) but a mature chicken is probably going to peck an immature chicken if their personal space is violated. Some hens are more aggressive about that than others, but it usually doesn't take long for the young ones to learn to avoid the adults. They need room to avoid.

Another factor is that my brooder is in the coop. The chicks go there straight from the incubator or post office. My broody hens hatch and raise their chicks with the flock. My chicks are raised as part of the flock.

You are not in either of my situations. I think you are in a good place as long as your coop and run are big enough and you have some patience. If I were in your situation with that little coop in the main run, I'd move the chicks out there. At seven weeks they are ready. I anticipate you may have issues getting them to sleep in the coop section, maybe you will be lucky from the start or maybe you will have to train them to go into the coop at night. Once you are convinced they will go to sleep in that coop at night and not try to sleep elsewhere I'd open the run door and let them mingle.

Do this when you can observe them to see how it goes. You may need to turn that new coop into a safe haven/panic room if there are issues. That's where you have an opening or two big enough for the chicks to get through but too small for the adults. I've never had to do that but if your main run is too small it is a good trick to know. As Aart said, multiple food and water stations widely separated are a good idea.

I'd want the chicks to return to that "grow-out" coop to sleep. Bedtime is usually when I have the worst squabbles and they are locked into close quarters, not a good thing. So let them mingle during the day and sleep separately for at least a month. Longer will not hurt.

After at least a month you can try moving them into the main coop. You may or may not have issues here. I move them in at night and make sure I'm down there when they first wake up to open the coop pop door. It has never been an issue with mine but I don't know what your coop looks like. After I'm comfortable there will be no issues I sleep in a bit more. That's usually two days but may be more for you.

Where they sleep could be another issue. My pullets typically do not sleep on the main roosts with the adults until they start to lay. That's when they have matured enough to force their way into the pecking order. Until then mine look for a safe place to sleep. As long as that is not my nests I don't care where it is as long as it is in a predator proof area. I integrate several groups every year, sleeping in the nest was enough of a problem that I put up a juvenile roost, lower than the main roosts, horizontally separated by a few feet, and higher than the nests. That pretty much solved that problem. You may not have that issue but if you do this may be a good thing to know.

I consider this an extremely cautious way to go about it. You can probably take short-cuts if you wish and be OK, especially if you have lots of room. I don't know what your main run and main coop look like but I think you have the potential for a very good integration. Good luck!

 

[Melontine]

A few different methods, it's weird how much wiggle room there is.
The first coop is supposed to hold up to ten chickens and I think my new one holds up to eight. My run is about 9 by 15 feet, and I also let my hens free-range during the day a lot. (That's another thing to make the chicks wait for, cats don't really bother full grown Orpingtons but I'm sure a young pullet is on the menu.)
But I'm thinking they should have plenty of space, so we'll have lots of room for them to learn how to interact. Maybe it's fine that I'm a bit over excited.
Today the hens pause to watch the chicks in the enclosed space, the chicks are a bit more unsure, but I think they're going to do well.

 

[aart]

The first coop is supposed to hold up to ten chickens and I think my new one holds up to eight.

Manufacturers population numbers are often way over what will best fit.
That's why folks are asking for dimensions(feet or inches or meters....)
...and pics always help.
The TSC coop in the first post is probably big enough for 2-3 birds.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Manufacturers population numbers are often way over what will best fit.
That's why folks are asking for dimensions(feet or inches or meters....)
...and pics always help.
The TSC coop in the first post is probably big enough for 2-3 birds.

^ This. Get a tape measure and measure out the actual space you have, since manufacturers rarely give the exact information we're looking for. The coop portion is the enclosed part, minus the nest box. If you have 4 to 5 hens and are adding up to 6 chicks, you'd want to aim for a minimum coop space of roughly 40-44 sq ft or more, assuming you want them to all live together in the end. More, because integration can be a little rough and the more space you have the more the new birds can put some distance between them and the older birds, if they're getting chased around. You'll also need roost space to match because roosting is one of those times where chickens tend to fight most over space (the other time would be feeding time, so additional feeders are also a good idea).

Your run is big enough, minimally speaking, but once again integration tends to require more space because the chicks need somewhere to run off to or hide behind to stop hens from chasing them, and that means adding obstacles, which eat up additional floor space.