When to add babies to the big coop?

[WhenInRhome]

Ok so I have 9 (2 are actually for my neighbor) little easter eggers that are currently in a small chicken tractor. They are running out of room and would like to integrate them to the big coop soon. I know that at least 3 are boys, well I am pretty sure they are. It is still hard to tell. They are about 2 months old. One for sure is, his comb is growing fast. The others I think are boys just have redder combs or they have three rows. Anyways, I will be rehoming them as soon as they are adult sized and I am sure they are boys. My coop is 4x8 (and inside is 4 ft tall at one end and 8 ft tall at the other) and the run is 8x30. I believe that is big enough for 10 chickens. We currently have 4 buff orpingtons in the big coop. There will be around 4 new girls going in and possibly a few more depending on sex.

When is it safe to add them in? I have a large wire dog crate I was planning on putting the small ones in inside the run so they could meet with some safety. How long do I leave them in there? I saw another post about giving the new babies a safe place to hide. They can do under the coop, it is about 2 feet off the ground. It is currently blocked so the hens wont lay eggs there. I could open it up some to allow the smaller ones a safe refuge. If I went that route will they be safe in the coop at night or could the big ones attack them?

 

[junebuggena]

You can start with through the fence type interaction now. So the two flocks can see each other but no touching, to get them used to each other. Then, after a week or two, let them free range or have run time for a few hours together each day. Gradually increase the amount of time they are together each day. Once everyone seems to be getting along, you can leave the younger ones in with the big girls full time. The boys might take a bit of a beating from the older hens. But those teenage boys need to be kept inline when the hormones start raging.

 

[WhenInRhome]

I have never let them out to free range. We have only had them about 2 months and they are not friendly. I doubt we could catch them to put them back up. There are a lot of predators too. My neighbors lost 9 baby turkeys and 6 chicks a few days ago. It was a raccoon. Another neighbor lost two flocks (12 birds) over the last 2 years to raccoons. They will attack during the day too. Also we have a lot of hawks and neighborhood dogs that get out sometimes. I have been planning on building a large 10x20 moveable fence/cage so they can forage more.


When we tried putting the 2 that are for my neighbor in with hers which were about a month older a few weeks back their rooster tried to kill them. It was scary. They all went after them pecking them like crazy till we pulled them out. She wants to try it again soon. I hope it goes better next time! That is the other reason I have been scared to put mine together.

 

[junebuggena]

That's why it's important to give them a period of time where the two groups can see, hear, and interact with each other, but not actually touch each other. Could you move the chick's tractor next to the adult's run? There is a big size difference between 4-6 week old chicks and 8-10 week old chicks. They were way too young to be introduced. Introductions and pecking order scuffles can be rough, but it's normal. You need to make sure that the chicks are big enough to take a beating, and fast enough to get away. Unless someone is actually causing injury and drawing blood, you need to let them sort things out.

 

[WhenInRhome]

You are right, they are much bigger now. I cannot believe how fast they have grown! I see the babies fighting and it looks harmless. Then when you see a big chicken picking on a little one it just looks horrible. I am not sure what kind of chicken they had that went nuts. They got several from a feed store and were not sure about breeds. Two are white with really thick stiff looking legs. They cannot walk very far before laying down. They grew 2x as fast as the others they have. There is one hen and one roo. The roo just started crowing and it sounds really sad lol He was the one trying to kill the small ones. It seemed like the hen was trying to corner and protect them from him.

I will put the tractor close today then this weekend we will start giving them some time inside the big dog crate in the big run.

 

[junebuggena]

Sounds like the big white ones are Cornish Cross; a meat bird bred to grow very big, very fast. They usually don't live past a year old under the best of circumstances. They are very poor layers and it's usually best to harvest them by about 6 to 10 weeks old, before they start suffering from the effects of growing so big and fast, at such a young age.