New chickens

[unbaked pegga]

I have 3 orpington hens 3 years old. Big girls. They free range. The first of March I got 2 each of speckled Sussex and Australorps-4 weeks old. I have been keeping them in kennels in the garage until they get big enough to run with the big girls. But sheesh it doesn't seem like they will ever be big enough. The Sussex are supposed to be 6 lbs when grown and the hatchery said they would mix well with the orpingtons. I am not as concerned about the australorps because I think they will be ok. They are Australian orpingtons anyhow. They are all growing but the australorps aren't half as big as the grown orps and the Sussex aren't even as big as the australorps. I just hate keeping them in a cage albeit a big one. I sit with them some during the day and pull the cages out on the driveway when weather permits. But the orps can be aggressive sometimes especially when it comes to food. Plus these little ones can fly! I clean their cages every day and they hover around the door, seeming to be looking for a way to escape. How big should they be before I try integrating them do ya'll think?

 

[SueT]

Put them where they can see but not touch each other and get acquainted for a couple of weeks. You can probably integrate them soon after that. Be sure they have several food and water options.
There are LOTS of threads w great advice and experiences about integrating newcomers.
Good luck!

 

[Justso]

I've been reading about early integration and liking what I see.
many here don't wait until their chicks are "big enough" and instead gets them right in there with the others. I'll try that next time.

 

[Ridgerunner]

You see that size stuff on here all the time. In my experience that does not meet reality. Its not the size of the chicken in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the chicken. It is really common for smaller chickens to dominate larger ones. Bantams often dominate full sized fowl.

There is something that does matter though, maturity. A more mature chicken will dominate a less mature chicken and will sometimes be aggressive toward it. My pullets normally mature enough to force their way into the pecking order about the time they start to lay. Until then they normally keep a distance form the adults. I think your young ones are pullets and are about 11 weeks old. You probably have another two to three months before they fully become one flock, hang out together and sleep together. Until then they sort of form a sub-flock and do their own thing separate from the adults. As long as it is peaceful you have a success.

I don't know what your facilities look like or how you manage them. How many coops and runs you have, how big each is, how the coops are laid out, and when the various areas are available to them. All that can have an effect on what is the best way to proceed. The more room they have the better. Giving the young ones ways to avoid the older adds greatly to the quality of the room you have. We are all unique and what works for me may not work for you because of those differences. For what it is worth I typically turn my brooder raised chicks loose with the flock at either 5 weeks or 8 weeks, depending in where I want them to sleep. If my coop is crowded it is 8 weeks, if not then 5 works. But my brooder is in the coop so the chicks basically grow up with the flock.

My general suggestions is to house the chicks next to the adults for about a week or more,where they can see each other but cannot physically get to each other. If your coop is big enough maybe set that cage in the coop. If the run is predator proof, maybe in the run. Maybe something else. After a week or so, let them out to mix when you can observe. Have different feeding and watering stations spread out so they can eat and drink without challenging the adults. Give them as much room as you can. You can improve the quality of the room you have by giving them places to hide behind, under, or on. Don't force them to be together but let them work that out. For example, if they want to sleep someplace separate (and they probably will) let them as long as it is someplace acceptable to you. If it is your nests get back and we can talk about that.

Will this work for you? I don't know. Some of that will depend on the individual personalities of your chickens, some will depend on your facilities and how it is available to them.

Good luck!

 

[aart]

I've been reading about early integration and liking what I see.
many here don't wait until their chicks are "big enough" and instead gets them right in there with the others. I'll try that next time.

I love integrating chicks young!
takes some setup tho, and you still need to adhere to the general integration tips and tricks.

Integration Basics:
It's all about territory and resources(space/food/water).
Existing birds will almost always attack new ones to defend their resources.
Understanding chicken behaviors is essential to integrating new birds into your flock.

Confine new birds within sight but physically segregated from older/existing birds for several weeks, so they can see and get used to each other but not physically interact.

In adjacent runs, spread scratch grains along the dividing mesh, best if mesh is just big enough for birds to stick their head thru, so they get used to eating together.

The more space, the better. Birds will peck to establish dominance, the pecked bird needs space to get away. As long as there's no copious blood drawn and/or new bird is not trapped/pinned down and beaten unmercilessly, let them work it out. Every time you interfere or remove new birds, they'll have to start the pecking order thing all over again.

Multiple feed/water stations. Dominance issues are most often carried out over sustenance, more stations lessens the frequency of that issue.

Places for the new birds to hide 'out of line of sight'(but not a dead end trap) and/or up and away from any bully birds. Roosts, pallets or boards leaned up against walls or up on concrete blocks, old chairs tables, branches, logs, stumps out in the run can really help. Lots of diversion and places to 'hide' instead of bare wide open run.