Questions About New Chicks and Hens

[dbendorf]

We just got 25 new babies last night and what we did was put them in a seperate cage in our chicken coop. I guess Im wondering if that is okay, this is our first time bringing in new chicks while we have hens. I dont know how long they will have to be in the cages and when we can introduce them to the hens. The lady at the place where we got them said they had to be seperated for 4 months and that to me seems along time.
I also thought about just bringing them in the house till than, any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
we live in Nebraska and we have a heated coop and today it was 60 something out but I know it will be colder through the month, we have heat lamp on them.
Thanks
Deb
Who was now 40 hens 1 mean old rooster and 25 chicks:/

 

[melissastraka]

I kept my 25 in a brooder in my garage till they were 3 months and then put them in the baby coop next to my hens. My babies found a way into the big coop within a couple days and they all seem to be getting along fine. The babies still can get into their area at night and if they feel threatened they can get away but so far so good!

 

[damselfish]

16 weeks seems like forever. Ours are going out to the room of the coop that's right next door to the hens' room when they are four weeks old. That's in about 10 days.

Then we're just going to keep an eye on it from there. We're hoping to have them mostly integrated in a few weeks. The chicks won't get free range privileges til later, so they won't be with the big girls all the time.

Oh and

to you both from another newbie!

 

[gallo34]

from what I have read, you seem to be on the right track...keep em warm and outta the draft...you will know when to let some out with the rest in time...they will grow differently...how big is the cage?

 

[AngelzFyre]

Any new birds, whether chicks or adults should be separated for at least 30 days in quarantine to prevent spread of any diseases.

The young ones won't have much immunity at first and don't need to be in with any adults until they are feathered out and almost the same size.
You'll also need a place where they can get out of harm's way should the hens not want them in where they are and also where they can get the correct feed and your hens get the layer feed they need.
You need to make sure that the young ones don't make the older ones sick as well by bringing any diseases in with them.

There's several charts on here as to what the temps for the brooder should be. 95 the first week and then reduce by 5 degrees each week following until you reach 70 degrees. Then they should start to get feathers and feather out. They can't be outside in the cold or with drafts before then.

Good luck on your new flock! Post pics so we can see them too

.