More help needed please:)-Integrating chicks to coop

[member 615286]

The little coop (10sq ft coop-designed for bantams) to house my little flock (photo below):
11-month old silkie hen has been on her own for 2-3 months.
I have been working to acclimate chicks to the temperates (low 20s at night high 40s during the day) and integrate the two 7-week old chicks (EE and welsummer) with the lone Silkie.
I did the see no touch and then some supervised interacting in the garage set up:
Silkie chased and pecked at them some, they were able to run away and they have been sharing the feeder (at the same) respectfully.
yesterdAy was the day to move them outside.
In the run (supervised): the silkie chased them a lot more, and looked like she was making an effort to pull their behind feathers out as she did. They had separate feed/water areas.
I partitioned it off (photo below) but was still hopeful I could get them in the coop together last night:
there is a high up shelf with a roost that Id hoped they’d use if I put them up there and the silkie would sleep down low as she always have.

I probably approached it all wrong.
I putting the chicks in first (up high on their roost) but they jumped right off and I didn’t feel comfortable letting the silkie in with them so they went back into the garage.
Should I add a partition across the top so they stay up there together until I let them out separately, for the short term (Photo below)? (both heating plates will be on brooder settings so EE and Welsummer shouldn’t get too hot trapped up thereof partitioned. I added the thermometer to keep an eye on temp).

Still trying my best to figure it out as I go and the insights/direction from you all has been super helpful.

Thank you!!

 

[member 615286]

The little coop (10sq ft coop-designed for bantams) to house my little flock (photo below):
11-month old silkie hen has been on her own for 2-3 months.
I have been working to acclimate chicks to the temperates (low 20s at night high 40s during the day) and integrate the two 7-week old chicks (EE and welsummer) with the lone Silkie.
I did the see no touch and then some supervised interacting in the garage set up:
Silkie chased and pecked at them some, they were able to run away and they have been sharing the feeder (at the same) respectfully.
yesterdAy was the day to move them outside.
In the run (supervised): the silkie chased them a lot more, and looked like she was making an effort to pull their behind feathers out as she did. They had separate feed/water areas.
I partitioned it off (photo below) but was still hopeful I could get them in the coop together last night:
there is a high up shelf with a roost that Id hoped they’d use if I put them up there and the silkie would sleep down low as she always have.

I probably approached it all wrong.
I putting the chicks in first (up high on their roost) but they jumped right off and I didn’t feel comfortable letting the silkie in with them so they went back into the garage.
Should I add a partition across the top so they stay up there together until I let them out separately, for the short term (Photo below)? (both heating plates will be on brooder settings so EE and Welsummer shouldn’t get too hot trapped up thereof partitioned. I added the thermometer to keep an eye on temp).

Still trying my best to figure it out as I go and the insights/direction from you all has been super helpful.

Thank you!!

(I can put them back in the garage if anyone thinks this is a horrible idea/set up - for the short term).

 

[rosemarythyme]

A partition might not be a bad idea, though you need to elevate that roost bar, as it's barely above the shelf it's sitting on.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

How long did you do the "see-no-touch" setup? If Silkie isn't accepting them yet, then you need to do that longer. Some say a week, but I do mine about three weeks. If you can, sprinkle some scratch on both sides of the partition that separates them twice a day so they are eating their treat together, side by side. Then one day move the partition a little bit or cut a hole in it so the chicks can go through if they want and go back through if they wish. With any luck, neither the Silkie nor the chicks will even notice that the partition is breached, and they will just be hanging out together with no problems. Let the chicks make their own decision about where to roost. It usually takes a few weeks for them to get up off the floor and onto the Big Girl roosts, but they figure it out. Good luck!

 

[member 615286]

How long did you do the "see-no-touch" setup? If Silkie isn't accepting them yet, then you need to do that longer. Some say a week, but I do mine about three weeks. If you can, sprinkle some scratch on both sides of the partition that separates them twice a day so they are eating their treat together, side by side. Then one day move the partition a little bit or cut a hole in it so the chicks can go through if they want and go back through if they wish. With any luck, neither the Silkie nor the chicks will even notice that the partition is breached, and they will just be hanging out together with no problems. Let the chicks make their own decision about where to roost. It usually takes a few weeks for them to get up off the floor and onto the Big Girl roosts, but they figure it out. Good luck!

They spent a week see no touch in the garage space and then shared the space supervised, and have been separated in the run (photos above) unless supervised

all my observations above.

She is still chasing them some and pecking but it doesn’t seem excessive (and they are fast and able to run away). they can also get up to the chairs and hang out where the silkie can’t.

Now I’m wondering… if I can leave them unsupervised based on these observations ?

Thank you!

(I don’t have the luxury of letting the chicks decide where to roost in the coop as im hearing is ideal as they need to go outside and the coop is small and the silkie is on the ground so chose not to lock them up in the coop per observations in the run in the event she wasn’t being nice and no where for them to escape, tho I’d image they’d jump up
To that shelf/roost where she can’t get to and so might take down the partition I put up last night after they spent a safe cozy night up there and know it exists. I hate to have them caged in that little space tho they are just sleeping
I don’t really know still learning as I go

One more question: what does the silkie “accepting them” look like exactly? I understand there will always be a pecking order and don’t imagine “acceptance” looks like them all snuggling together…
any indicator between normal pecking order versus her not accepting them (and maybe ongoing need for supervision?). Thanks again!

 

[member 615286]

A partition might not be a bad idea, though you need to elevate that roost bar, as it's barely above the shelf it's sitting on.

It was pretty on the fly lol
Suggestion for what to use for roosting bar and how high up (relative to the shelf and venting)?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

One more question: what does the silkie “accepting them” look like exactly?

She'll stop chasing them and stop trying to pull out their tail feathers. She may still peck at them once if they get too close to her or her food, reminding them to back off, but that's about it. They will respect her space and things will look generally peaceful. As long as blood is not being drawn, many people do not intervene and let the chickens work things out for themselves. The littles will learn to stay out of her way.

 

[member 615286]

She'll stop chasing them and stop trying to pull out their tail feathers. She may still peck at them once if they get too close to her or her food, reminding them to back off, but that's about it. They will respect her space and things will look generally peaceful. As long as blood is not being drawn, many people do not intervene and let the chickens work things out for themselves. The littles will learn to stay out of her way.

Yes, they stay out of her way lol
She’s still chasing them some and they run around briefly. But haven’t seen any feathers pulled at since their first encounter

 

[member 615286]

Yes, they stay out of her way lol
She’s still chasing them some and they run around briefly. But haven’t seen any feathers pulled at since their first encounter

She'll stop chasing them and stop trying to pull out their tail feathers. She may still peck at them once if they get too close to her or her food, reminding them to back off, but that's about it. They will respect her space and things will look generally peaceful. As long as blood is not being drawn, many people do not intervene and let the chickens work things out for themselves. The littles will learn to stay out of her way.

Update, she is still chasing them some and trying to pull their tail feathersSo… more separated (with some supervised?) days, yes?

 

[member 615286]

A partition might not be a bad idea, though you need to elevate that roost bar, as it's barely above the shelf it's sitting on.

Does this work?