too cold for 6 1/2 week olds?

[acw123]

I am trying to let my 6.5 week old barred Rocks get to know the 24 week old BO and Australorps in our flock. The BR's (two hens and a rooster) have been placed in the other hens chicken run during the day while the ladies free range and occasionally I put a few hens in to see how they interact. So far so good, the hens let them know they are in charge but after one or two pecks they really don't care. So I am thinking about putting a wire cage in to the coop at night to further get them used to each other with out the possibility of them getting ganged upon in close quarters during the night. So my first question is am I doing this too soon because of the age difference. Second question is will it be too cold for the BR's. I am in virginia and we are expecting night for the next week to be between 44 and 58. Not sure if I am pushing to hard to integrate at the possible expense of the BRs. Let me know your thoughts and experience.

 

[Ridgerunner]

You'll find that some people integrate chicks at that age successfully and some people have disasters at that age. Many broodies wean their chicks at 4 weeks and those chicks usually get along in the flock fine. I find the major factors are how much room you have and the personality of your chickens. So, are you pushing the integration? Maybe, maybe not.

As far as heat. Your chicks should be fully feathered out at about 4 to 5 weeks of age. They should be fine in the coop provided they have decent bedding to snuggle down in and are kept out of drafts. My brooder is in the coop from Day 1 and I take supplemental heat away at 4-1/2 to 5 weeks. They do fine.

I do agree with your caution on them being in close quarters while sleeping. I'd suggest opening that pop door real early the first week or so to prevent them being trapped in close quarters when they wake up. I'm probably being overcautious, but I do that with mine when I first integrate them.

 

[acw123]

Quote:
Thanks for your input. So I am going to try. They tolerate the chicks during the day and at night the existing, older hens will be able to move about the coop. I will have the 10 older hens in the coop which is 7'x6' w/ 2 individual nesting boxes and then a 6' run of sort of communal nesting boxes. They seem to choose the communal boxes and stick to the ends (none of the older hens like their roosting bar and the young BR's love theirs). I will put the BR's in a metal cage inside the coop in a corner and hope it helps them to get used to each other. I am thinking I should probably do this for at least 2 weeks. Will keep my fingers crossed.