Topic of the Week - Integrating Chicks into an Adult Flock

[Ponypoor]

Here's the laundry basketView attachment 3516986

That’s great! I definitely want to do this!

 

[Ponypoor]

Here's the laundry basketView attachment 3516986

You should check out Fluffy Butt Acres thread lots of knowledgeable people there and good advice.

 

[The Birb King]

I have eight chicks that ate 2 months old now and ready to come out of the grow out pen and join the main flocks. I could have introduced them sooner but I chose to wait longer

 

[SgtMaj]

I have four 9 weeks old pullets (2 Australorps & 2 Buff Orpingtons). I recently acquired two 4 week old Lavender Orpingtons. I have the older chicks in the main coop & pen and the younger in an attached pen with their own coop, pen, feed & water. I have opened the barrier between the two groups a couple of times and the older hens began to peck and chase the younger. The older also is very interested to eat and drink from the younger chicks area. I found it necessary to return to separation and plan to do so for another 3 or 4 days before attempting again. Clearly supervision and mediation is required at this point ; until the younger are accepted/safe.

 

[TXKukupantsKoop]

You should check out Fluffy Butt Acres thread lots of knowledgeable people there and good advice.

Update: only one hen is still having an issue with the babies. It stinks because she was/is my buddy hen out of the grown ups. If she is up and about and the babies are in eyesight she goes after them. The chicks are pretty good about getting out of get way. We created a separate roosting area for them today inside the coop. Their brooder pen was too small. I'm not letting them roost together until everyone is ok with each other. They're 6wks now- hopefully they'll be a "happy" family soon? The baby is Sweet Marie (loves to be with me all the time) and the hen is Rainy.. The trouble-maker. Lol!

 

[Iluveggers]

Just started integrating my 3 week olds this week. They are in a pet tent in the covered run. I hand move them to a dog crate in the coop at night. Today I am going to split the covered run and give them about half. The big girls will have the other half and the enclosed fenced yard off of it. Do you think next week I will be able to put tunnels in to make an escape area? And if I prop open the dog crate in the coop, before roost, do you think they will make their way there on their own? I could always kick the big girls out of the roofed run around baby roosting time (they start peeping to go in around 7:30, the big girls usually don’t head in til about 8:15-8:30).

I have 8 1-year old hens, and am moving 12 chicks in with them. (Thinking two of the 3 hatchlings are male and hoping all of the 9 sexed chicks are pullets. Will be processing any boys as soon as they crow, hopefully 12-14 weeks, as we cannot keep roosters).

 

[BDutch]

What is the best way to introduce chicks to the rest of the flock?

Having a broody and give her some hatchery eggs. The chicks are protected by mum.
But you do need plenty of space, a good and quiet place for a broody with chicks and hiding places.

 

[Sylvester017]

Here's the laundry basketView attachment 3516986

Love your innovative laundry basket idea! A good economical idea! What we did was to find used dog houses in thrift stores (like Goodwill) or asked friends for their old dog houses, and once we picked up a dog house thrown out in a neighbor's front yard on trash day!

We accumulated 5 dog houses to locate around the yard but are down to 4 as we didn't need so many after all. The chickens will eat the spiders inside the houses but if there are webs the chickens won't enter the houses. Keep webs free inside the houses and the chickens will eat the insect delicacies!

Too many dog houses were under this canopy which shaded a chicken dust box so we donated one house to a friend,

Blue Wheaten Ameraucana resting in the shade of a dog house.

This Silkie was the bird that used our dog houses the most.

One day it started to rain and 4 birds headed for the shelter of the largest house.

All birds exited the house after the rain stopped.

 

[PoppasGrill]

This is a great discussion. There are always differing opinions on ages, but attitude of the main flock and space availability are the biggest factors in my limited experience .
We just started introducing 28 chicks 5-7 weeks to our flock. We put them in store coops in the barn near the feed trough for better than a week to get used to seeing the big girls and boys.
This weekend we moved them to a big coop with6 adult hens that need a break from the boys ( their backs are featherless and a couple were scared to get off roosting bars even to eat). They appear to be getting along great with the chicks, so will treat the hens while confined for the next week or two.
They have starter feed ( local sourced) and oyster shell on the side, and will stay on this until about 4 months, then we feed all flock 18% mixed in a mash with scratch grains and shell on the side.

 

[Tram]

For myself, the last two years I have used utility panels ( 4x4 squares to create a safe space in the main coop which is 21'x12'. This batch of chicks spent 2 weeks in the stock tank and 3 weeks in their own mini coop. Week 5, I moved them into the main coop and doing well. Heat lamp remove the other day as all feathers are accounted for with warm temps at night.