splitting 10 baby chicks?

[bkint]

hello all.
I have 10 chicks about 3 weeks old. A friend of mine hatched them for her kindergarten class.
Had them for about 5days they are in and old chicken crate about 3’ x 2’ 12” tall, as a brooder. My question is can i split them up?
Theyve all been together since hatching, and there is one “runt”. They seemingly get along great. However my girlfriend is worried some are too rowdy and they dont have enough space. Sometimes the chicks do flap and sprint around and bump into eachother maybe a few pecks at eachother but nothing crazy they seem to get along ok.
I decided to split them up 5 larger ones in another crate and kept the smaller ones separate Can i do this? The smaller ones kind of hang around the edge of the brooder looking at my bigger ones. The larger ones dont seem to care but maybe because they are in the crate on the lower level?I have the chicken crates next to eachother one is sitting slightly lower than the other.
I just want to know if theyre sad is it ok to have them split up? will they not get along in the future?

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

You can split them up. And by the sounds, it's better to do that.

As far as in the future, they're just have to establish a pecking order, which takes about two weeks to do.

 

[bkint]

You can split them up. And by the sounds, it's better to do that.

As far as in the future, they're just have to establish a pecking order, which takes about two weeks to do.

thanks so much for the reply!

 

[Lady of McCamley]

They aren't sad. LOL. Chicks are competitive foodmongers, so moving one out only means "more for me."

ALL chicks chase each other and chest bump, flying around like little demons at 3 weeks of age.

3x2 feet is a little small for 10 active chicks, but not horribly. Dividing up larger/smaller was probably a good idea to prevent picking on the smaller ones.

It is excellent to let them still see each other. It will make integration easier when they are older.

LofMc

 

[bkint]

They aren't sad. LOL. Chicks are competitive foodmongers, so moving one out only means "more for me."

ALL chicks chase each other and chest bump, flying around like little demons at 3 weeks of age.

3x2 feet is a little small for 10 active chicks, but not horribly. Dividing up larger/smaller was probably a good idea to prevent picking on the smaller ones.

It is excellent to let them still see each other. It will make integration easier when they are older.

LofMc

Thanks for the reply. I tried attatching a photo so you can see my current set up?Do you think they will need more room height wise. as they come closer to fully feathered? also any other critiques suggestions would be greatly appreciated

 

[Lady of McCamley]

The shorter cage may get a bit tight by 6 weeks, but in summertime they will be ready to transition outside.

LofMc

 

[rosemarythyme]

I assume you're checking the temperatures in both brooders? Are these lower wattage bulbs? 2 heat lamps is a lot for a small area. Chicks need both a warm area and cool areas where they can escape the heat as needed.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Yes. The smaller chicks may be at the edge of the smaller cage if they are too warm and trying to get away from the heat of the closer bulb.

LofMc

 

[bkint]

I assume you're checking the temperatures in both brooders? Are these lower wattage bulbs? 2 heat lamps is a lot for a small area. Chicks need both a warm area and cool areas where they can escape

I assume you're checking the temperatures in both brooders? Are these lower wattage bulbs? 2 heat lamps is a lot for a small area. Chicks need both a warm area and cool areas where they can escape the heat as needed.

250w and 150w Ive since removed the 150w and hung the 250 pretty much in the center of where the 2 cages meet. Thermostat reads about 90.