I purchased 4 sexed chicks 10 weeks ago, 2 of which turned out to be roosters. I was able to find them a loving home but was sad to be left with only 2 out of the 4 I had planned for. Someone in my local backyard chicken group was giving away 2 pullets that are the same age as my 2. He over purchased so he's downsizing his chick cohort. He also has a flock of older hens. They share a run. I am likely going to take these pullets. Here are my questions:
1. Do I need to quarantine the two newbies (who are 11 weeks old) before I integrate them into my newbie flock of two?
2. If so, for how long?
3. I've never integrated pullets with pullets. Is there anything that would be useful to know? Will they be aggressive to each other at this stage?
4. Then, when they are close to the same size as my older flock, I will need to do another integration of the 4 younger ones with the 5 older ones. Am I crazy to attempt all these integrations? I'm nervous that I'm creating chaos for the flock.
My set up at home is a coop and attached run in my backyard. The 5 older hens inhabit this space. I have a big dog cage in the run where the pullets live. I let the older ones free range in the backyard when I'm also outside. I let the two little ones free range with them (although they go to different parts of the yard) for about half an hour each day. So this is what the newbies will be coming into. I look forward to hearing people's thoughts on quarantine and integration.
Thank you!
1. Do I need to quarantine the two newbies (who are 11 weeks old) before I integrate them into my newbie flock of two?
2. If so, for how long?
3. I've never integrated pullets with pullets. Is there anything that would be useful to know? Will they be aggressive to each other at this stage?
4. Then, when they are close to the same size as my older flock, I will need to do another integration of the 4 younger ones with the 5 older ones. Am I crazy to attempt all these integrations? I'm nervous that I'm creating chaos for the flock.
My set up at home is a coop and attached run in my backyard. The 5 older hens inhabit this space. I have a big dog cage in the run where the pullets live. I let the older ones free range in the backyard when I'm also outside. I let the two little ones free range with them (although they go to different parts of the yard) for about half an hour each day. So this is what the newbies will be coming into. I look forward to hearing people's thoughts on quarantine and integration.
Thank you!