My Bigs won't accept my Littles!

[rosieflock]

It is my first time introducing new birds to an existing flock but I felt prepared after reading and reading everyone's great advice. We had 3, 2 year old hens of mixed breeds. They were raised from chicks. We got 3 new chicks, raised them in from a couple days old. Waited until 8 weeks to put them in a small coop next to our big coop (with a secure yard and free grazing space) with our Bigs. Naturally curious and very vocal for weeks. At 12 weeks, we introduced shared space - giving plenty of room for all. The Bigs - one in particular will start and the other two will fall in line - will start in on the Littles who are very loud and flappy when the Bigs come at them (making it worse in my opinion!) Anyway, we are at 15/16 week old Littles now and during the day the Littles hunker in the secure yard while the Bigs are in and out of everywhere. The Littles roost out in the secure yard while the Bigs roost up in the coop. This is working okay for now, but if I don't run out to release the Bigs into the free grazing space, the Littles start to get picked on immediately in the morning unless they hunker up on the roost high above the Bigs. Anyway! I guess I am at a loss as to my next step. I can't have the Littles cooping out in the secure yard through the winter. The Bigs have to allow them into the coop! Pinless Peepers are an option but I've never used them. And free ranging isn't really an option because of our wooded land with many predators. Any words of advice? Thanks!!!!

 

[BaaKaaawk]

They will work it out. It's called the pecking order because they peck... it's uncomfortable for people to watch because we don't just beat on each other, but it is part of life for a chicken.

The only caveat to this is if they are truly overcrowded (which it doesn't sound like they are).

Chickens also run in clicks (like high school kids). If they were raised together they will tend to just stay in an area together. It's also part of the socialization process (so if they're all cuddled in a corner, it is likely where they want to be with their click-mates).

You will likely have one hen who is at the bottom of the totem pole with a little bald spot on her head. It's nature.

People want to make chickens act like people, but they're chickens.

 

[Ridgerunner]

How big, in feet or meters, is your coop, secure area, and whatever else you have? What might be plenty of room after they are all mature and settled into one flock may not be while integrating. Knowing what you have to work with can help us to give relevant suggestions.

Much of what you describe doesn't sound that unusual when you house immature chickens with mature chickens. Until the pullets mature enough to force their way into the pecking order mine pretty much form a sub-flock and stay away from the adults as much as they can. Typically this is when the pullets start laying. Each time it is different. Sometimes the pullets mingle quite a bit with the adults during the day, but most batches avoid them like the plague. Typically when they do mature enough to take a place in the pecking order the transition to one flock is pretty peaceful. Usually.

It sounds like you may have another issue though, one of your hens should be called Attila. It's not real common but not all that unusual either for a hen to be a brute and bully. Most can be bullies without a lot of encouragement but most are not pure brutes. It sounds like one of your hens goes out of her way to attack the young ones. At least you have identified her.

My suggestion is to separate her from all the other chickens for at least a week. Put her somewhere she cannot see the others or be seen. Then see how the other two act around the pullets. They may be OK, they may not. Only one way to find out. The idea is that this knocks her out of the pecking order so when she goes back in she has other things to think about than abusing young pullets. Sometimes this works, sometimes not.