Re-introducing

MeBeetle

In the Brooder
Mar 13, 2021
16
10
44
So… about 2 weeks ago, my hen hatched/adopted 8 chicks. They have been living in a glorified dog crate inside my chicken run. (About 4x4, the run is about 6x12 plus a 6x6 coop)

How/when should I take down their tent and introduce them to the flock? I brought mom into the run alone today, and she started bowing to all of the other hens, including the one that’s normally on the bottom.

Also - my rooster is big and rough, but protective.

Should I just bring out mama with what will be a freezer hen? Should I let the littles get a bit bigger? Should I just take it down overnight and see what happens?
 
When I saw that "bowing" behavior in my hen with her week-old chicks, it was because she was warning the other hens away. If they didn't back off immediately, she pounced. Since yours have been living in the run all along, with exposure to the other hens, it should be easier.

Please take a look at this thread by @Mrs. K for how she has integrated chicks. Sounds like it could work well with your setup:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-little-different-way-of-adding-chicks.1521710/
But I'm not sure what you'd do with mama hen - inside or outside the enclosure? Let's see what others have to say...

Oh, and I've seen that roosters tend to be very protective of chicks, rather than picking on them. I'd worry more about the other hens being attacked by mama hen, or them picking on babies, rather than him.
 
Personally, right now, the broody hormones are high. I would take down the enclosure ASAP. The mama will generally place herself between the hens and chicks, mine often set up strategically in a corner or along a wall. I generally let my layers out of the coop/run just to give everyone a bit more space. With those hormones, the broody will stomp around, scare everyone, and they give her space and her chicks learn where to go when a layer gives them a 'mind your manners' peck. The chicks learn the social order of an established flock.

Often times, people with the best of intentions want to wait until the chicks are bigger - But often times the broody hormones drop off around 4 weeks and the hen will 'forget' her chicks. If you turn them in then, the chicks have no social manners, the laying hens will treat the broody hen like a total stranger and attack, she has almost forgotten her chicks and is now in a desperate try to re-enter the flock. The chicks are at the mercy of all. A wreck all the way around.

Mrs K
 
I would at the very least open the crate door so they can go in and out as they wish. If mama is doing her job, she will protect the chicks from the rest of the flock. I had a broody "surrogate mom" hatch 3 chicks and I kept them protected from the flock with a baby gate. They had a triangular corner inside the coop and the gate was leaning so that mama and chicks could move between the protected area and the rest of the coop. Mama took great care of the chicks until they reached about 5 weeks, at which time, Mama literally jumped on a shelf, squawked like the dickens for several minutes, declared her independence and went and laid an egg! That night she left the chicks to their own devices and roosted with her friends. She still protected the littles, and no one really bothered them. They are three months now and have integrated with the flock although they still stay together all the time. It was really easy, just letting Mama do her job. By the time Mama moved on, the littles were feathered and able to hang on their own.
 

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