Mixing ages of peachicks

[Artistickatt]

I have my two 12 week olds in their own “advanced brooder” (8 ft 2 story large rabbit hutch) connected to an extra large dog play yard on my screen porch. I figure pretty cushy digs for the next two weeks while my greenhouse/coop and pen is being built.

My two new chicks are a week old today and have been moved from the inside the house to their home for the next two months (a large RAC brooder) which is also on the porch.

I have one week old chick who routinely whistle screams when it starts to be nightfall and the sunlight starts to fade. I have never had any of the others do this. Worse yet he riles up all the others including the older chicks into thinking something is wrong.

The only thing I have found to calm them down is music (specifically opera…). It is either calming them down or drowning him out. This goes on for two hours and you can hear his whistle across the pasture…

Thoughts or suggestions? is there a point they can be introduced to each other in the pen or will it just have to wait until the new chicks go outside a 4 months.

(after you get done laughing imagining the ruckus on my porch with four peachicks upset and crying and me trying to find the right music to settle them.)

 

[KsKingBee]

I have my two 12 week olds in their own “advanced brooder” (8 ft 2 story large rabbit hutch) connected to an extra large dog play yard on my screen porch. I figure pretty cushy digs for the next two weeks while my greenhouse/coop and pen is being built.

My two new chicks are a week old today and have been moved from the inside the house to their home for the next two months (a large RAC brooder) which is also on the porch.

I have one week old chick who routinely whistle screams when it starts to be nightfall and the sunlight starts to fade. I have never had any of the others do this. Worse yet he riles up all the others including the older chicks into thinking something is wrong.

The only thing I have found to calm them down is music (specifically opera…). It is either calming them down or drowning him out. This goes on for two hours and you can hear his whistle across the pasture…

Thoughts or suggestions? is there a point they can be introduced to each other in the pen or will it just have to wait until the new chicks go outside a 4 months.

View attachment 4182290 (after you get done laughing imagining the ruckus on my porch with four peachicks upset and crying and me trying to find the right music to settle them.)

I wouldn't put them together for at least another three months. They will have to establish a pecking order and the young ones will have to be advanced enough to hold their own. When you finally do be sure to provide hiding places for the little ones to get away if they need to.

 

[KsKingBee]

Can you partition off the upper floor? BTW, all of my chicks peep at sundown. It is a calling to roost, they all do it.

 

[Artistickatt]

Well then at my house apparently it will be Pavarotti and a call to roost. I wonder why that one has to scream like the undead. Once they tire out (and I make sure they are under the brooder plate for the night) it is fine.

I can’t easily separate the top from the bottom because my other chicks use that as nightly sleeping area. Are you thinking so they can see each other but not get to each other?

 

[KsKingBee]

Well then at my house apparently it will be Pavarotti and a call to roost. I wonder why that one has to scream like the undead. Once they tire out (and I make sure they are under the brooder plate for the night) it is fine.

I can’t easily separate the top from the bottom because my other chicks use that as nightly sleeping area. Are you thinking so they can see each other but not get to each other?

Yes. Acclimate the flock.

 

[Artistickatt]

The ruckus last night was a massive one. Disturbing the older ones enough where they didn’t come to roost in their sleeping area and instead tried to sleep penned up against the farthest edge of the cage to be near the younger chicks. Not the end of the world as we were having a hot days the last few days, but it did get into the 70s last night. I make sure they have a warm sleeping area, but when I found that two young chicks had mashed themselves as close to the edge of the cage as they could towards the bigger chicks I intervened at get them under the heater. I have tried hard to be hands off with them (not play with them) but it is obvious they bonded with me and prefer me being around… sigh

There’s about 4 feet away from each other. One brooder is up on the table and the hutch is at ground level.

This will only go on for the next week, hopefully, as their final pen gets finished. I’m not sure it’s a roosting call that’s seems to be a different sound. This one is an alarmed chick screech of danger. May be I will just keep a light on through the night this week until they are separated for the next 4 months. Then work or establishing a proper routine..