When should I introduce 1 week olds to 4 week olds?

[RGEISENDORF]

Sooo my husband and I thought we would get some egg layers. I know that we have one leghorn, 1 RIR and the other 5 are 2 black 1 brown and two with the long feathers on their legs (brown) these 7 are all 4 weeks old and get along fine. They have been going outside for 3 days in a 10x40 pen with a door to their 10x20 coop. Inside the coop I have 6 1 week old Silkie (Luv them) -I spotted them on this sight and went from raising egg layers to owning cute silkies -they are sectioned off in a corner with a heat lamp- the other 7 have taken to percing on top of the heat lamp that is running at a 45 degree angle in the corner covered with chicken wire in the evening and the last 3 nights the 2 with the long feathers on their legs have dropped down into the area with the silkies through the gap in the wire between the wall and seem to get along great with them. (I find them in there in the morning) I fixed the gap this morning but it got me thinking that it might be better/easier to just try and combine them now .... the two with the feathers on their feet ARE much smaller than the other 5 four week olds and the leg horn is definetly in charge.

Should I combine them now or keep them seperated for ..... how long?
Just let them out together during the day and seperate them at night?

I didn't think it would be this hard. You know get some chickens, eat some eggs, frick its not rocket science right. But know I love watching them and want nothing bad to happen to any of them. Today that Leghorn got a worm and you would have thought someone was dying, I have never heard such a fuss. She took off running in circles with 6 crazy chicks following her screaming at the top of her lungs. I swear this is more entertainment then I have had in a long time!!!! anyway when should I combine them. The silkies seem so much smaller and grow so much slower than the other girls. Thanks, Rebecca

 

[Judy]

Are you saying they have all been going outside together?

 

[mom2chicksandpups]

When we tried to put some of about the same ages together, the older chicks wanted to peck the smaller ones and pick at their feathers. I would wait until they are older. Or you could try and watch them for a while to see what they do...

 

[RGEISENDORF]

Quote:
The four week olds go outside. The babies are in the same coop but isolated in a corner and can't get out.

 

[RGEISENDORF]

Quote:
Sooo at what age did you try again and did it work? The silkies seem so much smaller than the others did at this age.... Should I put them with the ones with long feathers on their legs first and them put them all together? I hate being new.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

You *might* be able to keep them all together at this time, but there's still a big developmental difference between their ages that won't be as significant as they continue to grow. Sort of like keeping 1-year-old & 4-year-old children together in a room, there's a lot of potential for injury to the babies, but later when they're ages 5 & 9 they should get along together better.

You could keep them the way you're doing now & maybe in another week or two remove the barrier and watch to make sure they're getting along.

 

[RGEISENDORF]

Quote:
That makes scence - it just seems when the little ones are 4 weeks the big ones will be HUGE but I guess they will still be 8 weeks in their brains.... I guess I will wait 3 more weeks. That was the point I was going to open the gate and let them free range so maybe they will be to distracted by the wide open space to peck my little fluff balls!

 

[Sissy]

Hi as your flock grows they will get together .


Dont hate being new LOL
We all were New at some time or another..
and still are leaning ,
and finding something new all the time.
Welcome to BYC

\\Sissy

 

[cmom]

You can try putting them all together since they have already somewhat been together and watch them carefully. Also, having a safe place for the younger ones to go where the larger/older birds can't get to them helps. They will figure it out

 

[RGEISENDORF]

Quote:
We are reconfiguring the coop this weekend - dividing it in half with a silder door so I may open it and let them see how they do. The Silkies are just so Tiny compared to the others and that frick'n Leghorn (4 weeks) attacked my daughter (13yrs) last night so I can imagine what she could do to the babie Silkies.