Topic of the Week - Integrating Chicks into an Adult Flock

[MyFlockIsMyLife]

Oh wait sorry, we actually have 3 leghorns now, one got taken by a bobcat yesterday,

I know it’s the circle of life but I hate losing any of my girls or boys to predators. So sad! I hope you didn’t have to clean up the mess of blood and bits of meat and bone and feathers strewn about your yard the way I did when hawks got 2 of my girls a couple years ago…traumatic in its own way.

 

[MyFlockIsMyLife]

Those are some pretty birds

Thank you so much! I think so too haha they’re literally my life blood. Between my chickens and my garden- I have everything that makes me happy and I never want to leave home hahaha

 

[MyFlockIsMyLife]

It’s a mix called Rhode Island Blue

can’t remember what it mixed View attachment 3841760with.
This is them just under a week old.

They’re beautiful!!!!

 

[Sylvester017]

Our 3 older girls on one side of deer fencing (one old Dominique and 2 Silkie hens) with 3 new Silkie pullets on near side of deer fencing.

For a couple weeks we let them all see each other thru the fencing. At night we put the new Silkies in a corner of the coop on pine shavings and used their old brooder panels as a wall for privacy -- the brooder panels and pine shavings were familiar to them as chicks so they settled in typical Silkie pile-up slumber at night.

OPEN COOP DOOR SHOWS SECTION OF SILKIE SLUMBER AREA

Took 2-3 days for all 6 girls to get familiar w/sharing coop and yard. The 3 older girls toodle the whole yard in their own flock while the 3 new Silkies toodle together in their own flock. So glad the 3 new girls have each other to toodle with -- it would've been much harder to integrate just one new pullet alone into an existing flock.

Also, having multiple feeding/watering stations around the yard keeps down squabbling.

 

[Stitchaquilt3]

I'll try this; one opinion among many. My incubated chicks move to a section of the coop with a heat lamp in the corner, at about three weeks of age, in sight and hearing of the main flock. It will be late April in Michigan, so chilly. When they are feathered out and don't need the extra heat, they start having the door to the outside opened, and start exploring the main coop and outside. The flock and chicks start interacting after a couple more days, when the youngsters have figured out how to return to their are of the coop at night. They are much smaller than the adults, and I have both standards and bantams. The key for me is that observation before actual contact, and having them meet while free ranging, so there's plenty of room to avoid issues. Usually some chicks get pecked lightly for being rude to the adult hens, and they learn. I've never had a chick injured doing this. Chicks raised by broodies are in the main flock with mama from about five days of age, and nobody messes with mama! I feed Flock Raiser to everyone, with oyster shell on the side. I've always got roosters, a few old hens, and molting birds, so it's best here. Mary

This is exactly what I do. It has always worked out fine.