Should I buy eggs or wait it out?

[Debby27]

thanks, I'm kinda new at this . nice to meet another Pennsylvanian here I live just east of Pittsburgh.

Nice to meet you too!

We are in SE PA.....near Allentown....There are quite a few PA's here...

and whole lot of other really nice peeps! You'll fit right in and get lots of good information here.

 

[karl69]

The hens will beat him up! After a couple of weeks he may begin mating them.

Adding a rooster or older hens will not make them lay eggs earlier. There are ways to force them to lay a bit earlier but you really do not want them to start laying until they are ready. Laying too soon can blow up their egg laying organs.

The average age for all breeds to lay eggs is in the 25 week range. 16 weeks would be very early and none of your breeds are in that group.

The RIRs will likely be first but do not expect eggs until after 20 weeks old. The Dels will be a couple weeks or so later for the first egg.

please don't misunderstand me, I'm not trying to get them lay early .
I'm new and a little impatient I thought I would get a couple older hen to get fresh eggs, not to make the younger ones lay sooner. I would like to expand my flook someday. Can I expect the same conflict when my birds are older?

 

[XxMingirlxX]

please don't misunderstand me, I'm not trying to get them lay early .
I'm new and a little impatient I thought I would get a couple older hen to get fresh eggs, not to make the younger ones lay sooner. I would like to expand my flook someday. Can I expect the same conflict when my birds are older?

I would just try to be patient; even if you got older hens now, I imagine it would only be about three weeks before the younger ones lay. Also, moving the hens is stressful and many hens don't lay for about two weeks after been moved flocks. Wait until your flock has grown and become established before adding new members

 

[karl69]

Nice to meet you too!    We are in SE PA.....near Allentown....There are quite a few PA's here...   and whole lot of other really nice peeps!  You'll fit right in and get lots of good information here. 

that's why I signed up for this all the questions I Googled led me here and everything I've got from here has put my mind at ease.

 

[ronott1]

please don't misunderstand me, I'm not trying to get them lay early .
I'm new and a little impatient I thought I would get a couple older hen to get fresh eggs, not to make the younger ones lay sooner. I would like to expand my flook someday. Can I expect the same conflict when my birds are older?

I understand now!

You will be able to combine them but you need to quarantine for two weeks to make sure the new hens do not have an illness.

Here is a guide:

I have a similar situation, since I have multiple hatches over a period of months. I read about breeders who keep all their different age groups separate, but that's not possible here.
I think so much depends on the individual birds dispositions, so what works one year may not work the next. I just do the best I can.

To answer your question about what is the oldest that I've been able to merge ... I'm constantly merging groups of different ages, in and out of different pens. (This is regarding females- not males.) So, there's not a set age when it will or won't work. They seem to accept reorganization, perhaps because it happens so often. I always try to integrate with at least a pair, or more. Putting a single bird into a new group will sometimes result in that bird becoming a scapegoat.

Here's what I do: Newly hatched chicks are kept in a brooder with their hatchmates until they feather out.
I have a large coop next to my house. It opens up to my yard, with grass, trees and lots of roses for cover. When the chicks feather out, they are put in this coop. For the first week, they are kept in an enclosure in this coop, so they get used to it. After that, the coop door is opened every day and they can range the yard.
I keep integrating new batches of chicks into this coop. Keeping them enclosed the first week also serves to introduce them to the previous group(s) in a protected way. The older birds always are somewhat dominant over the younger. This isn't ideal, but it's the way it is. I watch to make sure that none are getting hurt. This hasn't been an issue. I make sure that there are multiple feeders and waterers available. The coop is large enough that they all have space. After awhile, they all seem to become one group.
When the males become sexually mature - as soon as I see chasing going on - that group of mature males are separated to a separate bachelor pen.
This is where it gets tricky. Every year, it seems to be a little different. Sometimes I can add groups of males together. Last year, I could not. Two males that had grown up together and had been buddies were separated for about a month, then reunited. Never been a problem before, but this time my best male ended up being injured so badly that he died. Lesson learned. I'll never try to reunite groups of males that have been separated.
So, the males have a pen for culls and a pen for possible breeders. I also have a cull pen for pullets/hens. The possible breeder pullets stay in the coop near the house until they are large enough not to be hawk bait. Then I move them, in pairs or groups, out to the mobile coop on pasture. The mature hens in the mobile coop might push them around a bit at first, but then they all get along. There is sometimes a single rooster with this group. Males are rotated out there in the off season. During breeding season, I'm taking hens in and out of there, so the group is always changing.

That's what works for me.

 

[karl69]

I would just try to be patient; even if you got older hens now, I imagine I would only be about three weeks before the younger ones lay. Also, moving the hens is stressful and many hens don't lay for about two weeks after been moved flocks. Wait until your flock has grown and become established before adding new members

thanks for the advice, that why I signed up!

 

[Debby27]

Yep same here...lol....

 

[gilcamp4]

we have had chickens for 6 years this time around, i mix all the time, we have rir, black sexlicks and red sexlicks for three years this winter we got the delaware blue hens, made a pen and put blue hens alone, this summer we had peeps so we moved the blue hens in with the rest, everything went great next week we put mom back in with the larger hens, we do have 13 eggs in the house we are waiting for them to hatch then as soon as they can they will go out with the other peeps, i have never had a problem putting older and younger together, but yes keep them away from your flock you had fo at least 2 weeks to make sure they are not sick, we did not do that 8 years ago and the new onces were sick, we ended up haven to put all down, fix a cage with tarp over it, that way they are coveed from rain and sun. move it around so they can eat grass.

 

[karl69]

Yep same here...lol....

just had a predator sneak around the barn toward the coop!
I don't always fire a warning shot but when I do its center mass!

 

[ronott1]

we have had chickens for 6 years this time around, i mix all the time, we have rir, black sexlicks and red sexlicks for three years this winter we got the delaware blue hens, made a pen and put blue hens alone, this summer we had peeps so we moved the blue hens in with the rest, everything went great next week we put mom back in with the larger hens, we do have 13 eggs in the house we are waiting for them to hatch then as soon as they can they will go out with the other peeps, i have never had a problem putting older and younger together, but yes keep them away from your flock you had fo at least 2 weeks to make sure they are not sick, we did not do that 8 years ago and the new onces were sick, we ended up haven to put all down, fix a cage with tarp over it, that way they are coveed from rain and sun. move it around so they can eat grass.

I have had problems with my Spanish breeds but the regular layer breeds are very used to moving others in and out.

I do quarantine new ones though.