Spitzhaubens

[Faraday40]

So what do you all think---- I'm planning to move my indoor chicks outside to their little coop today, as they are getting bored and stinky in their 1' by 2' birdcage brooder. Low temps will be in the low 70's, highs in 90's. There will be no heat source but they have lots of feathers and from what I see, they don't really use the warming corner under the CHE bulb... Spitz chick is about 3 weeks old, bantam may be several days older. With only 2 of them, tho, there isn't much warmth from huddling together.
Their coop is within the run with the hen and chicks and they will be able to interact thru wire mesh. I am really enjoying setting everything up for them, and looking forward to seeing the reactions and taking photos.

At 3 weeks they should be able to handle 70s temps at night.

 

[Alaskan]

Sounds like great temps to move them out

 

[SueT]

I brought the orphans out to their cage in the hen/chicks' run. Currently the newbies do not have access to the run. This cage seems huge to them today.
The hen and chicks, were immediately curious. I did not think Moonshine was acting aggressive. At first the orphans were peeping, afraid, and I wonder if she at first thought one of her own got locked in there. After a while they were really exploring their new cage, flying around, finding the familiar food and water containers, etc. They were talking happily. Moonshine and chicks watched them with interest and vice versa.

So far so good. I am not bringing them back in. The cage indoors has been dismantled.
I will be nervous about leaving them out there tonight, but that is their new home.

 

[Finnie]

How long do you plan to keep them separated? If Moonshine seems interested in adopting them, you could do a trial meeting, and then decide whether they have to stay locked up or could integrate right away.

When I am hatching weekly, I put new chicks in a small brooder within my chick raising pen. But then at one to two weeks old I toss them into the older "group at large" chicks, and they all integrate just fine. For you, Moonshine's attitude is probably your only real concern.

 

[SueT]

you could do a trial meeting

Well we had a trial meeting when chick was less than 1 day old.(it hatched in house from late egg Moonshine abandoned.) I assumed she'd welcome it. She tried to kill it.
She's a very opinionated hen, but this see-no-touch set up may help the situation.
There is someone who wants the Spitz chicks, so if they can't be integrated, I'll have this woman take the orphans first if she'd agree to take the bantam buddy. Now that they are off of heat, that should work. She's Amish and they don't have a good way to keep baby chicks warm other than hens.

 

[SueT]

They are 3 weeks +
The 3 w hen, 2 days older than the orphan, are quite a bit bigger.
They interact some thru the mesh, couldn't get any good pics. Moonshine, tho swears at the orphans and they jump back from her.

 

[Alaskan]

Wow! What a size difference!

 

[SueT]

Wow! What a size difference!

well, the larger one is in the foreground, it isn't as much as it looks....

 

[Alaskan]

Ah! Thanks

 

[SueT]

So now the chicks with hen are 4 weeks old....getting big! Proud mama still adores them.

The one I hatched loves to be held, but I don't do it much because the other orphan gets upset.