quarantine for new chicks

[DouglasB]

I recently aquired 11, 4 day old chicks who are now 3 weeks old and as full of stew as they can be. After 6-8 weeks in the brooder, do i then have to quarantine them before i put them in a coop and run that is separate from my older birds, but under the same roof. They would be separated only by a fence, so they would be close, but not together.

 

[21hens-incharge]

No concern for disease at the point of integration. Having a fence in between and separate sleeping quarters is for safety against pecking.

You will have had them in the brooder separate from the adults as well as having gotten them young enough that they would not have been alive long enough to be exposed to diseases.

Enjoy your chicks.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Unless you and anyone else dealing with the chickens have already been observing strict medical quarantine (aart linked the article above) then your chicks have already been exposed to much of what the hens might have and vice versa. If the chicks were obtained from a reputable hatchery the risk of biosecurity issues is extremely low anyhow, so might as well go ahead and integrate them like normal.

 

[aart]

Should I assume there is no illness to worry about after weeks in the broader, and seem healthy?

Probably not.

Consider biological/medical quarantine:
BYC Medical Quarantine Article

Do you plan on fully integrating with the existing flock or keeping them separate long term?
Here's how I, and a couple others, handle.....
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/

Oh, and... Welcome to BYC! @DouglasB
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[lbgreenfield]

I recently aquired 11, 4 day old chicks who are now 3 weeks old and as full of stew as they can be. After 6-8 weeks in the brooder, do i then have to quarantine them before i put them in a coop and run that is separate from my older birds, but under the same roof. They would be separated only by a fence, so they would be close, but not together.

Yup! Look but can’t touch will help with eventual flock integration

 

[lbgreenfield]

Should I assume there is no illness to worry about after weeks in the broader, and seem healthy?

I don’t think you need to worry about illness but I’m honestly not sure. I’ve done the same thing you plan to do for the last 2 times I had chicks to integrate into my existing flock and did not have any issues.

 

[BDutch]

@DouglasB
I would be more concerned about the cold and pecking order.

Chicks (6 - 8 weeks old) need warmth in winter. Even when they are in a group. We have mild winters where I live but I wouldn’t dare to start with newly hatched in autumn / winter not having a warm coop/ stable where they have warmth and space to grow / develop.

Keeping the older flock and the newbies in sight of each other probably means they don’t have a warm place to run around (?) The least you need to do is give them enough space and some heating inside this first winter.

If you’re older birds are vaccinated against Marek and the new chicks not , you probably need to seperate them until they are > 16 weeks (what I remember from reading, do check this info).

 

[DouglasB]

Yup! Look but can’t touch will help with eventual flock integration

Should I assume there is no illness to worry about after weeks in the broader, and seem healthy?

 

[DouglasB]

Probably not.

Consider biological/medical quarantine:
BYC Medical Quarantine Article

Do you plan on fully integrating with the existing flock or keeping them separate long term?
Here's how I, and a couple others, handle.....
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/

Oh, and... Welcome to BYC! @DouglasB
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!
View attachment 2424729

They would be under the same roof. The run is divided into 2 sections by a wall/ fence. They wont share a coop, feeder, waterer. They will have been in the brooder in my garage until six weeks, they into their space in the coop with heat until fully featherd as it will be chilly in the blue ridge in va. I may give them access to their run on warmer days with the ability to return to the heat sourse if they want.