Introducing new hens to existing flock

[The Cuckoo Nest66]

We currently have 9 chickens of mixed ages, one of which is a rooster. We finally got the chemistry/pecking order all settled and now i feel like I want a few more. I happened to find an ad by the same lady we bought our current flock from and she has 10 hens left. I assume she would like for them to all go together but I'm not entirely sure we have enough space in our coop for 19 chickens. I know you're supposed to have about 4 feet per chicken (all of ours are/will be full size), our coop is 14ftx15ft. We have four roosts that measure between 11 ft and 4 ft. There are five nesting boxes. Should be enough space, right? Math isnt my strong suit but if I'm doing my math correctly thats about 11 sqft for everyone, yes? We technically have a second coop but it is not set up for use yet. The attached covered run is about three times the size of the coop itself and they free range on five acres all day every day. I'm looking for suggestions on how many chickens I could comfortably add without needing to set up the other coop. I also would love ideas on merging the two groups whether it's only two new girls or 10. Do we really need to separate them for a month if they came from the same flock 6 weeks ago?
Thanks!

 

[pennyJo1960]

OKay first how is it they came from the same coop ? where you bought them all or your birds hatched them

 

[The Cuckoo Nest66]

OKay first how is it they came from the same coop ? where you bought them all or your birds hatched them

The lady we got the current flock from had about 100 chickens at the time. We took 10, and now she has a few remaining from that original 100.

 

[azygous]

Roosting space is more important than coop square footage. If you measure all your linear perches and total it, if it comes to at least twenty feet, preferably thirty feet for wing action when flying up to roost, you will have adequate coop space.

The run, if you use one, needs ten square feet per chicken, but since you free range, that's not important.

Since all chickens came from the same source, I wouldn't bother quarantining.

 

[Mrs. K]

I wouldn't quarantine them either, but if you do the math... and you add 10 birds, you are probably getting close to a filled coop. As just another idea, it might be better to wait, and add 10 chicks this year. Chickens are not real long lived animals, and many times they lay less and less eggs each year.

My point is, if you get these chickens, all your chickens will be the same age. Which means next winter, they will molt at the same time, and you could very well be buying eggs in the store.

Where as, if you buy chicks this year, they will be coming into lay, just as your original flock is going into molt. You will have eggs all year round.

If you want an ongoing egg laying flock, most people plan on rehoming, or culling older birds and adding younger birds each year.

Just another option.

Mrs K

 

[The Cuckoo Nest66]

I wouldn't quarantine them either, but if you do the math... and you add 10 birds, you are probably getting close to a filled coop. As just another idea, it might be better to wait, and add 10 chicks this year. Chickens are not real long lived animals, and many times they lay less and less eggs each year.

My point is, if you get these chickens, all your chickens will be the same age. Which means next winter, they will molt at the same time, and you could very well be buying eggs in the store.

Where as, if you buy chicks this year, they will be coming into lay, just as your original flock is going into molt. You will have eggs all year round.

If you want an ongoing egg laying flock, most people plan on rehoming, or culling older birds and adding younger birds each year.

Just another option.

Mrs K

That is a really good point. We most likely wont be coming home with all 10, but maybe 2-4 to make up for the two surprise cockerels we got from the last group. We still have one here and I wouldn't be opposed to raising our own chicks if they came to be.

Side note-if we have one pullet who is an outsider most of the time, should we bring home an odd number of new hens in hopes that they may all end up pairing off? Is that a common thing to do?

 

[pennyJo1960]

Like 3 instead of 2 sure not certain it will work worth a try

 

[azygous]

Chickens do not "pair off". Mostly they form peer groups with those they were brooded with as chicks. This, however, does not guarantee they will all be best buddies. They will usually flock together is all.

I have a flock of twenty. My oldest hen was one of my very first baby chicks. A year later, I got some new chicks, and one of those is still alive. A year later, I got six more chicks, and two of those are still alive.

Those hens, ages nine through eleven years are extremely tight. Best buddies, inseparable. They became friends by the attrition of their brooder mates over the years. But while they were all young, they didn't give one another the time of day.

None of my other chickens have formed strong bonds with another chicken other than those that still are young enough to have brooder mates still alive, and they aren't especially tight. Not like the old biddies club that have known one another for a decade and are truly close. Here are three of them.

 

[Boonie Stomper]

I doubt the odd / even would make a difference. I would however make sure the new birds haven't got anything new to spread to your coop from theirs before merging them. Check them over for any signs of illness, disease or parasites and as general precaution, treat your coop too for their protection.
Some close supervision at first is also a good idea to nip any pecking order conflicts in the bud.

 

[The Cuckoo Nest66]

Chickens do not "pair off". Mostly they form peer groups with those they were brooded with as chicks. This, however, does not guarantee they will all be best buddies. They will usually flock together is all.

I have a flock of twenty. My oldest hen was one of my very first baby chicks. A year later, I got some new chicks, and one of those is still alive. A year later, I got six more chicks, and two of those are still alive.

Those hens, ages nine through eleven years are extremely tight. Best buddies, inseparable. They became friends by the attrition of their brooder mates over the years. But while they were all young, they didn't give one another the time of day.

None of my other chickens have formed strong bonds with another chicken other than those that still are young enough to have brooder mates still alive, and they aren't especially tight. Not like the old biddies club that have known one another for a decade and are truly close. Here are three of them.View attachment 2008851

That's so cool! Good to know, I wasn't sure if pairing off was really a thing so I'm glad I asked! Beautiful girls btw.