When to put bantams with standards?

[jchesson]

Hi everyone!
I have 5 grown standards, and 6 standards that are about 4 months old. I recently bought 2 silkie bantam that are about 6 weeks old. I'm asking for opinions: at what age would you put the chicks with the older ones outside? Weather isn't an issue here, but I'm worried about them being "bullied." I am planning to put a small pet carrier in the run for them to get away from the big ones if needed....

Thank you guys!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I would hold your silkies out of those groups until they are at least 4 months old. They need to be "feisty" and fight back/stand their ground or they will possibly be killed/injured.

Having the ability to get inside a carrier will not save them, as they will find themselves cornered, possibly with half a dozen aggressors willing to peck them to death.

When you are getting ready to combine your silkies, I recommend taking one of the older ones out (preferably your nicest chicken) and placing them with the silkies for a week or two to ensure there is not just the new group of silkies that is "new." The one you removed will be slightly lower in the pecking order, maybe just temporarily, but this will benefit the silkies.

Silkies have a hole in the head like a baby does (the size of it depends on their genetics), and can get brain damage or be killed if pecked on the head. If you would like to see pics of this, you can go to the browneggblueegg.com website and look at the "silkie skull" article.
http://browneggblueegg.com/Article.html
scroll down column on left to find silkie skull article

Silkies can be high in the pecking order- they are not doomed to be bullied, but making sure they are old enough to deal with hen-itude (hen attitude LOL) is important.

I hope this helps!