keeping different aged chicks in brooder?

[sodabottlebantams]

at what age group should you try and keep your chicks in a brooder? should they all be around same age or is it ok to have some up to a month older?

 

[Bantam90210]

I've had month olds with day olds before.. I would advise to only do it if need it but if their older then day olds then you can try it, just keep a very close eye on them!

[edt] I had a strange illness run through my TSC batch of chicks one year and I had to put my mother-in-law's red sex-linked month old chick in with the last Bantam chick I had live until they got a new shippment of Bantams in.

 

[Erica]

Hate to disagree, but... I wouldn't do it with day olds. Month olds are just so much bigger and more active, and day olds can be really delicate. I'm sure with some breeds it can work... But it's not ideal.

I would put a divider down the brooder. If it's made of wire mesh you could have the little ones on the warmer side, the 4 week olds will still get their share of heat.

Erica

 

[Kaugomu]

I have a two week old in with my two day olds, they've gotten along great from the get go, no incidents and it's been about 4 days.

 

[JusticeFamilyFarm]

I added 2 three-week olds in with my 2 day to 1 week olds and had no problem. I don't know if I'd have done it if the young ones would have been the minority, but having only 2 3-weekers and 12 1 week and under, I felt ok trying it out. They all did fine, one of the young ones got what I'm pretty sure was a good peck (a little sore above her beak) but that was all I ever saw and it healed right up. It's been 2 weeks or so now and everyone's doing great together...still...waiting for their coop.

 

[Bantam90210]

Quote:
Reason I said only do it if need be! I didnt mean but the whole dang flock in with a day old! just one would work!

**my 2 day old Mille Fleur d'Uccle with my Mother-in-law's 4 week old Red Sex-Link!!

 

[PetRock]

I put four 1-2 day olds in with five 2-3 wk olds this year. The little ones got a couple pecks but pecked the big ones right back. I did put a low, half a pottery pot in with them so the little ones could have a hidey hole away from the bigger ones. They used it for the first hour and after that inserted themselves into the middle of the pack. We watched them close for the first couple days but integration went smoothly. Maybe it depends on the personality of the little ones and the big ones. Ours are 9-12 wks old now and free range (with us supervising) as a pack making sure to stay away from the older hens.

 

[turbodog]

I've read here before that your usually ok mixing chicks within four weeks. Not that it couldn't work with a wider age difference, just that within a four week span seems to have less problems.

 

[sodabottlebantams]

thanks for the suggestions.
i currently have 2 one month old btw japanese bantams in a spacious 3ftx3ft brooder along with a few week old btw japanese bantams along with a few ginger red bantams from the same hatch.