Just added 6wk chicks to exsisting pullets

[kfratar]

Hey. So I started my flock out mid July and let's just say chicken addiction set in fast. I started with 6 "pullets" and one bantam rooster and one of the pullets has turned out to be a rooster as well (he will be culled soon) anyways so then I got 11 chicks at a week or so of age and now they are about 7wks now I'm guessing and are way too big to stay in the brooder any longer. I set up a dog kennel inside the big girls (20wk roughly) run and a little run off of it for the chicks. We are setting up another coop to separate the bantam rooster and a few of the pullets and leave 2 of the pullets in the existing run and then let the chicks out with those 2. The big girls are all bawking up a storm right now to the new additions but I keep going to check on them every little bit. Anyone have any suggestions or changes to how I am doing the intro/separating the flock into 2 different flocks?
Thanks

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Usually you pen them next to each other for 1-2 weeks than with supervision start letting all the young ones mingle with the older ones, putting the younger ones back into their separate pen until you are comfortable leaving them together. I would just separate the rooster by himself within sight of everyone, you can let him out occasionally for exercise.

Are you trying to combine them or separate them.

 

[kfratar]

Well I was thinking separate them because of the 7 older ones that I first bought I have 5 EE pullets and then what we hoped was a pullet cuckoo marans which turned out to be a mixed breed rooster then our planned rooster which is a bantam polish. Then with the 11 younger chicks I got 8 BCM 2 of which are forsure cockerels the rest still have smaller combs which are more yellow/pink, 2 ameraucana's which I believe are actually EE's because their legs are more of a yellow with a hint of green one with a pea comb the other with a single comb and their combs are still more on the yellow side so possibly both pullets and then I also have a cockerel silkie.

The older "cuckoo marans" is the one that will be culled soon because with that batch I wasn't expecting 2 roosters and he has in a dominant way jumped on my back and with small kids that just isn't going to work well. But then of my chicks I was hoping to keep the 2 BCM cockerels and the silkie (as a pet) so that is what has led me to the idea of seprataing into 2 groups but keeping 2 of the older EE's with the younger group.... I plan to hatch eggs later of the BCMs and the EE's to keep our flock progressing when the hens get older and aren't producing as well.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

You're too confusing, lol.

 

[aart]

Yes, very confusing.


Here's some notes I've taken on integration that I found to be very helpful.......
......take what applies or might help and ignore the rest.
See if any of them, or the links provided at the bottom, might offer some tips that will assist you in your situation:

Integration of new chickens into flock.

Consider medical quarantine:
BYC Medical Quarantine Article
Poultry Biosecurity
BYC 'medical quarantine' search

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. Integrating new birds of equal size works best.

For smaller chicks I used a large wire dog crate right in the coop for the smallers. I removed the crate door and put up a piece of wire fencing over the opening and bent up one corner just enough for the smallers to fit thru but the biggers could not. Feed and water inside the crate for the smallers. Make sure the smallers know how to get in and out of the crate opening before exposing them to the olders. this worked out great for me, by the time the crate was too small for the them to roost in there(about 3 weeks), they had pretty much integrated themselves to the olders.

If you have too many smallers to fit in a crate you can partition off part of the coop with a wire wall and make the same openings for smallers escape.


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 blood drawn and/or new bird is not trapped/pinned down, 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 and/or up and away from any bully birds.

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

Another option, if possible, is to put all birds in a new coop and run, this takes the territoriality issues away.

Read up on integration..... BYC advanced search>titles only>integration
This is good place to start reading:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/adding-to-your-flock