Introducing pullets to grown hens?

[emulhall]

Hello everyone! I just posted in the chicken behaviors forum about one of my adult hen’s aggression issues, so if you want some more background there, check out that post.

I ordered three baby chicks from MPC: a blue easter egger, a cream legbar, and a snowy easter egger. I am nervous about introducing them to my pair of grown hens, because one of them is quite aggressive. I don’t know if that’s because there’s just one other chicken and she feels the need to beat her down. I don’t know. The whole reason I’m expanding the flock is to hopefully disperse that chicken’s need for dominance.

Anyway, how do I go about introducing them? How old should they be when they go outside to live with them? Any and all advice and stories about introducing chickens are SO welcome and so appreciated. !!!

 

[FeatherstoneFrm]

I put my chicks out at about 5 weeks in a large wire crate. They can check each other out without touching for a couple of weeks then open the crate enough that the babies can go out but get back in quickly for safety and for food and water. The hens may not let them eat their food for a while. I leave them that way for a couple of weeks until I see the babies roosting near the adults.
**You'll need to watch them carefully when you open the crate and make sure your hen doesn't injure them.

 

[Justso]

Aart has a great article on this
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/

 

[rosemarythyme]

I also do early integration like aart but you do need to set up for it.

Since you mention you already have aggression issues with your existing birds, when you're able to, can you post a photo or a detailed description of your set up, both coop and run?