Poll: separating bantams

Should I or not?

  • Yes!

    Votes: 2 18.2%
  • No…bad idea

    Votes: 2 18.2%
  • Other (describe in a response below)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I don’t know…both have ups and downs

    Votes: 7 63.6%

  • Total voters
    11

EEforMe

Crowing
Sep 5, 2021
1,856
4,824
321
Northwest Washington, USA (near Seattle)
This year we bought eight chicks from My Pet Chicken, we bought for 4 bantams and 4 full-sized. We lost one of the bantams to failure to thrive the day they arrived. Now we have seven, the bantams are: one black frizzled Cochin bantam, one bantam polish, and one 100% silked white EE. Silkie and polish can’t see the best and the frizzle…well…isn’t the brightest. My idea is I could try and integrate those three with my blind hen, Blink. Here is the link to more info on Blink:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/the-story-of-blind-blink-❤️-the-story-of-the-three-raccoons.1494923/
Doing this would mean separating best brood-mate friends and makes me sad but if it’s for their safety and to give Blink some more company then I’ll do it. The other thing is that since they are bantams and there’s so few of them it would be permanent. I probably couldn’t put three little bantams in a flock of 11 full sized hens and “hope for the best” if things went wrong with Blink, could I? The other thing is do you even think they would get along with a blind chicken? I don’t think they could hurt her because they’re so tiny but if it would make them all sad I won’t do it. I also don’t want to separate the brood-mates because you know how sweet they are together. So, the question: should I try and separate my little guys and make a “defenseless flock” with my blind girl? Thanks if you read this far!
 
Ok thanks, I’m just a tad concerned about the safety of the bantams predator wise
I mainly onlt raise bantams, and I keep some with a small LF flock. Ive had a one eyed chicken and a partially blind chicken before. The flock never minded them, as long as the birds are gone Ive always had a pretty easy time putting new birds together. Unless theres not enough space, your older chickens are aggressive, or the growouts arent at least 4-5 months old then you shouldnt worry too much.🤟
 
I think you're saying the bantams are with the standard-size pullets now (same age, raised together), right?

I would probably leave them together as long as they do well. That way you don't have to split up friends in that group.

If any bantam starts looking like she's picked on, then try to put her in with Blink the blind hen (look-no-touch setup first, although of course for Blink it would really be hear-no-touch.) And if any is being picked on, then her "friends" are obviously not friendly anymore!

Some bantams end up at the top of the pecking order, so I would not automatically assume that being small makes them safe to be with Blink. But you have a good point about their restricted vision, that it can affect how they relate to other chickens and also how well they avoid predators, so I agree that putting them with Blink (even worse vision, because she's actually blind) could be worth trying. And I also agree that the same points can apply to the frizzle, even though she lacks intelligence instead of lacking vision. So I would keep this as a backup plan for any bantams that don't do well in the bigger group, but I wouldn't split them up now if they seem to be doing well there.
 
I had bantams in with my regular girls and they do just fine. If you have silkies and polishes you might need to cut their crests because they have trouble seeing predators.
 
Do you have a full sized rooster whose will squash them? If so I'd separate them. Otherwise, I see no reason to.

They're just chickens. I have a totally mixed flock of bantams, large fowl, and everything inbetween.
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom