Need Advice... New chicks in the mail

[ckelley]

Sorry- It's long....

So two weeks ago I got my order of chicks (9), and I had a very broody hen. I wanted to try to get her to adopt, and was introducing a few at a time. I gave her 2 and one died because (I'm guessing) she didn't show it where the water was. So I delayed a day introducing anymore to let them get adjusted and I could observe them eating and drinking using the nipple water system. Then I lost one in the brooder to pasty butt. We had washed her and dried her, but I guess it was not in time.

Life happened and a few more days went by. Then I read that it may be too late to introduce more to Mama, and I had them in the nest-box, and was debating kicking my other hens out and giving mama and baby (maybe babies) the coop.

I called the hatchery after my two losses, and they are sending me replacements, plus 3 EE to fill the box. They should be here tomorrow.

So I have 7, 2 week old chicks in the brooder, 1, 2 week old in the coop, and 5 new chicks in the mail.

Can/Should I put new ones with the 7 in brooder? Will they mix ok? Move 7 to the coop? Put the new chicks in the coop? (Surprise mama!) Move 1 from coop to brooder and give her the 5?

Also, the chick in the coop is noticeably smaller than the ones in the brooder. Maybe not getting enough food?

What was I thinking?!


More fluff butts... that's what.

 

[azygous]

Yours is a complicated situation but not at all uncommon. Most of us have experienced this.

Here's my advice to solve the problems of the different age groups and get them all socially bonded at the same time.

If you have room in your coop or run, run is better if it's protected, rig up a chick pen with partitions so they are protected from the adult flock but also the newest from the oldest chicks. Have this pen in close proximity to the adult flock.

This way, all will become acquainted and the chicks will also form a social unit, all being under four weeks of age when this can happen easily with no pecking order issues.

After the newest have turned two weeks, open chick size openings in the chick pens and allow them to all mingle, not only with each other, but the adult flock.

I wrote an article about this linked below. Brooding outdoors is beneficial to everyone. Just rig a heating pad heat source for the chicks and you're all set. I'd use two heating pads, one for each group.

 

[ckelley]

Thank you! I'm going to read them now.

 

[ckelley]

Here are some pics of my thrown together play pens in the run. I reused the panels I had after we moved my coop to our new house.

I observed mama who had one chick with my others and she was only aggressive toward the yellow ones. Not the ones that looked like her chick.

I separated them, so there is essentially three areas in my run.

They stayed overnight outside, and I am please to report they did excellently. Both the 2 weekers and the newbies are together. I observed them for a long time and there was not aggression or dangerous crowding.

All is good!

Thank you AZYGOUS!!!!