New chicks sleeping outside

[walte1fr]

we finally introduced our 4 new chickens to our 3 existing chickens. Well our buff Orpington laid an egg then was pecked to no recovery. The other 3 newbies sleep outside in the run instead of joining the old 3 in the coop. Can I set them in the coop after everyone is asleep or will they eventually go in there? Just hate to lose another one to the grumpy old ones.
Any advice?

 

[WVduckchick]

Sure! Once its dark outside, you can easily pick them up and put them inside. The old ones might be blocking them from going in at dark.

 

[walte1fr]

Ok thanks they have always slept on the ground since chicks for some reason and the small ones just cuddle up under the bigger one. I just wasn't sure if the big ones would wake what and be like what the heck and start pecking these ones

 

[aart]

we finally introduced our 4 new chickens to our 3 existing chickens. Well our buff Orpington laid an egg then was pecked to no recovery. The other 3 newbies sleep outside in the run instead of joining the old 3 in the coop. Can I set them in the coop after everyone is asleep or will they eventually go in there? Just hate to lose another one to the grumpy old ones.
Any advice?

The egg did not recover......or the bird who laid it?

I just wasn't sure if the big ones would wake what and be like what the heck and start pecking these ones

They very well might.

More info on your coop/run(size in feet by feet and pics),
and how you integrated would be very helpful.
How old are the 'new' birds?

 

[Ridgerunner]

I’m sorry but I don’t know anywhere close to enough to be able to offer an informed opinion. Aart asked some good questions. How big are your coop and run and how are they set up, how old are the two different groups of chickens, and what have you done to date as far as integration? It sounds like one has died, I sure would not suggest just tossing them together without knowing a lot more. What were the circumstances when that one died? Where have they all been sleeping? Are all of them female? The more information you can give us the more likely we are to be able to give informed answers.

 

[walte1fr]

The coup all in all is about 4ftx2ft it originally was one of those tractor suppply ones with part of that being the run. I didn't like that so I enclosed it all with roosting rungs throughout the whole thing. I then put it in a 10x10 dog fence with a roof since we live in town this is all I have to offer. Yes the hen was pecked to death not the egg. The 3 original are 1 year old and the new ones were hatched in April this year. Integration was we raised the new chicks inside until they were big enough. Then I build a 12'x3' run for them to grow up in and placed it next to the current chicken coop. They lived fence to fence so they could see and talk to eachother for a month. Then we beat the sunrise one morning and put the new chickens in with the old ones before they woke up and waited for them. Everything went fine. They were establishing their pecking order but nothing too bad. Then one day about 2 weeks later we went out there and there was a new egg layer. Then we went out the next day and our buff Orpington was dead and now no more new eggs

 

[Frazzemrat1]

are you planning on building a bigger coop? those prefabed ones are never big enough for the amount of chickens they say they accommodate. Your birds may feel they're cramped in that set up, and that could be contributing to the pecking and animosity.

 

[walte1fr]

I noticed that which is why I took the original "coop and run" and enclosed the run and put roosting rings there to make the entire thing a coop with actual 2 different "rooms" all in all with the laying boxes it's about 7'x30"

 

[aart]

he entire thing a coop with actual 2 different "rooms" all in all with the laying boxes it's about 7'x30"

Way too small for 7 birds.

Yes the hen was pecked to death not the egg.

This is the worst that can happen when coops are too crowded.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Oh dear. Not enough space for the new ones to be able to escape. I think you already found that with the loss of the one.

I have no easy answer other then to build a much larger coop or sell some birds. Even at 7'x30" that is only enough space for 3 full sized birds.