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I'm kinda new to the whole chicken thing, but I recently hatched 2 separate batches of chicks and here are my findings:
*The first batch of chicks I kept separate in a pen till they were about 2 months old, then I blend them in with the older flock. They chase them all the time & kept them from their food & water feeders. At this time they are approximately 3 months old and now they are blending a little better, the only difference I remove the roo from the pen and added the younger chicks.
*The second batch I created a pen within a pen and added approximately 2 week old chicks. At the age of 1 month, I've now added them to the original flock and they are doing fine. In fact this batch is not so afraid like the first batch.
Here are my thoughts - The pen within a pen (especially if they're chicks) is a good ideal and release them at the age of 1 month. But it may take some experimentation. BTW - I have one bantam chick mixed with my rhode island red and it's doing fine.
Hope this help you.