Tips For Introducing Younger Chicks To An Established Flock??

[DClopein]

Hello.
I recently got 2 Polish Chickens. They are around 10 or 12 weeks old & right now I have them in their own separate pen right up against the big coop so they can all get usto seeing each other. I was curious as to what you do to safely introduce younger chickens to an already established flock & what's a good age to do so??
I appreciate any & all tips!!
Thanks in advance!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Have lots of space for the little to run and hide and keep an eye on them. Do you have a rooster?

 

[6BeachChicks]

Try a visual introduction like you are doing for 1-2 weeks. Then integrate them but be wary especially because polish are likely to get picked on because of their head poofs.

 

[All4Eggz]

Polish chickens are actually one of the hardest breeds to introduce to an existing flock.
They are usually the ones bullied the most, and can get pecked on the head.
Here is a thread about that: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/polish-chicken-being-bullied.1496371/
Just be prepared - that may happen to your polish chickens.

For the first couple days, maybe get a large enclosure to put the polish chickens in, and put the enclosure in the run of the existing chickens' coop. They will be able to see each other, but won't be able to attack each other. After a couple of days, they could get used to the new chickens' presence. But sometimes it doesn't work.

Good luck Let us know how it goes

 

[aart]

Hello.
I recently got 2 Polish Chickens. They are around 10 or 12 weeks old & right now I have them in their own separate pen right up against the big coop so they can all get usto seeing each other. I was curious as to what you do to safely introduce younger chickens to an already established flock & what's a good age to do so??
I appreciate any & all tips!!
Thanks in advance!

I like to integrate very young....
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/

But still follow these......
Integration Basics:
It's all about territory and resources(space/food/water).
Existing birds will almost always attack new ones to defend their resources.
Understanding chicken behaviors is essential to integrating new birds into your flock.

Confine new birds within sight but physically segregated from older/existing birds for several weeks, so they can see and get used to each other but not physically interact.

In adjacent runs, spread scratch grains along the dividing mesh, best if mesh is just big enough for birds to stick their head thru, so they get used to eating together.

The more space, the better. Birds will peck to establish dominance, the pecked bird needs space to get away. As long as there's no copious blood drawn and/or new bird is not trapped/pinned down and beaten unmercilessly, let them work it out. Every time you interfere or remove new birds, they'll have to start the pecking order thing all over again.

Multiple feed/water stations. Dominance issues are most often carried out over sustenance, more stations lessens the frequency of that issue.

Places for the new birds to hide 'out of line of sight'(but not a dead end trap) and/or up and away from any bully birds. Roosts, pallets or boards leaned up against walls or up on concrete blocks, old chairs tables, branches, logs, stumps out in the run can really help. Lots of diversion and places to 'hide' instead of bare wide open run.
Good ideas for hiding places:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-cluttered-run.1323792/

 

[Ridgerunner]

I was curious as to what you do to safely introduce younger chickens to an already established flock & what's a good age to do so?

My brooder is in the coop, the chicks go in there straight from the incubator or the post office so they basically grow up with the flock. I have a fairly large coop (8' x 12'), over 3,000 square feet of room outside, and weather they can use that all day every day when I'm integrating. Mine are typically outside around the adults by five weeks.

That doesn't do you any good because you don't have those conditions so you have to do something else. To help us determine what might be good methods for you to use, what do you have to work with? In feet, how big is your coop and, in feet, your run? What does that pen you have them in look like? Where are they sleeping at night? How many adults do you have? In Maryland they are plenty old enough that the weather isn't an issue. Thanks for including your location. Photos of your set-up could be really helpful.

Since I don't know what you have to work with the best I can do are some generic suggestions. Housing them across wire so they can get used to each other can be a big help. Give them as much room as you can, inside and out. You can improve the quality of what room you do have by adding clutter. Clutter means things they can hide under, behind, or over to help break line of sight. Having widely separated feeding and watering stations, hopefully out of line if sight, can help. Try to not force them into tight spaces near each other but let them work those types of things out on their own terms.

My immature chicks tend to avoid the adults during the day and at night until they mature enough to join the flock as adults. Until them they stay away form the adults. During the day the adults may be under the mulberry tree while the chicks are under the plum tree. Or they are in the coop when the adults are in the run. If they are all locked in the coop together, like in the morning before I open the pop door, the juveniles are on the roosts when the adults are on the coop floor. My juveniles are not going to sleep on the main roosts with the adults, instead they find somewhere they feel safe sleeping. As long as they are not sleeping in my nests and are somewhere predator safe I don't care where they sleep.

My goal for this type of integration is that no one gets hurt. Nothing more complicated than that. Once they mature they'll join the others around the campfire toasting marshmallows and singing Cum-Ba-Ya. Those days will come when they are ready but in the meantime I just don't want anyone to get hurt.

 

[6BeachChicks]

Polish chickens are actually one of the hardest breeds to introduce to an existing flock.
They are usually the ones bullied the most, and can get pecked on the head.
Here is a thread about that: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/polish-chicken-being-bullied.1496371/
Just be prepared - that may happen to your polish chickens.

For the first couple days, maybe get a large enclosure to put the polish chickens in, and put the enclosure in the run of the existing chickens' coop. They will be able to see each other, but won't be able to attack each other. After a couple of days, they could get used to the new chickens' presence. But sometimes it doesn't work.

Good luck Let us know how it goes

Hey I know that thread…..

 

[3KillerBs]

Here are some useful articles on integration:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/my-coop-brooder-and-integration.74591/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/introducing-new-chickens-using-the-“see-but-don’t-touch”-method.67839/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/adding-to-your-flock.47756/

 

[DClopein]

My brooder is in the coop, the chicks go in there straight from the incubator or the post office so they basically grow up with the flock. I have a fairly large coop (8' x 12'), over 3,000 square feet of room outside, and weather they can use that all day every day when I'm integrating. Mine are typically outside around the adults by five weeks.

That doesn't do you any good because you don't have those conditions so you have to do something else. To help us determine what might be good methods for you to use, what do you have to work with? In feet, how big is your coop and, in feet, your run? What does that pen you have them in look like? Where are they sleeping at night? How many adults do you have? In Maryland they are plenty old enough that the weather isn't an issue. Thanks for including your location. Photos of your set-up could be really helpful.

Since I don't know what you have to work with the best I can do are some generic suggestions. Housing them across wire so they can get used to each other can be a big help. Give them as much room as you can, inside and out. You can improve the quality of what room you do have by adding clutter. Clutter means things they can hide under, behind, or over to help break line of sight. Having widely separated feeding and watering stations, hopefully out of line if sight, can help. Try to not force them into tight spaces near each other but let them work those types of things out on their own terms.

My immature chicks tend to avoid the adults during the day and at night until they mature enough to join the flock as adults. Until them they stay away form the adults. During the day the adults may be under the mulberry tree while the chicks are under the plum tree. Or they are in the coop when the adults are in the run. If they are all locked in the coop together, like in the morning before I open the pop door, the juveniles are on the roosts when the adults are on the coop floor. My juveniles are not going to sleep on the main roosts with the adults, instead they find somewhere they feel safe sleeping. As long as they are not sleeping in my nests and are somewhere predator safe I don't care where they sleep.

My goal for this type of integration is that no one gets hurt. Nothing more complicated than that. Once they mature they'll join the others around the campfire toasting marshmallows and singing Cum-Ba-Ya. Those days will come when they are ready but in the meantime I just don't want anyone to get hurt.

My brooder is in the coop, the chicks go in there straight from the incubator or the post office so they basically grow up with the flock. I have a fairly large coop (8' x 12'), over 3,000 square feet of room outside, and weather they can use that all day every day when I'm integrating. Mine are typically outside around the adults by five weeks.

That doesn't do you any good because you don't have those conditions so you have to do something else. To help us determine what might be good methods for you to use, what do you have to work with? In feet, how big is your coop and, in feet, your run? What does that pen you have them in look like? Where are they sleeping at night? How many adults do you have? In Maryland they are plenty old enough that the weather isn't an issue. Thanks for including your location. Photos of your set-up could be really helpful.

Since I don't know what you have to work with the best I can do are some generic suggestions. Housing them across wire so they can get used to each other can be a big help. Give them as much room as you can, inside and out. You can improve the quality of what room you do have by adding clutter. Clutter means things they can hide under, behind, or over to help break line of sight. Having widely separated feeding and watering stations, hopefully out of line if sight, can help. Try to not force them into tight spaces near each other but let them work those types of things out on their own terms.

My immature chicks tend to avoid the adults during the day and at night until they mature enough to join the flock as adults. Until them they stay away form the adults. During the day the adults may be under the mulberry tree while the chicks are under the plum tree. Or they are in the coop when the adults are in the run. If they are all locked in the coop together, like in the morning before I open the pop door, the juveniles are on the roosts when the adults are on the coop floor. My juveniles are not going to sleep on the main roosts with the adults, instead they find somewhere they feel safe sleeping. As long as they are not sleeping in my nests and are somewhere predator safe I don't care where they sleep.

My goal for this type of integration is that no one gets hurt. Nothing more complicated than that. Once they mature they'll join the others around the campfire toasting marshmallows and singing Cum-Ba-Ya. Those days will come when they are ready but in the meantime I just don't want anyone to get hurt.

Good morning & thank you for answering.
I attached pictures of my current setup. It was from TS. Now, before you judge me lol they (my older girls) only go in their coop at night to sleep and I let them out first thing in the morning & then they have the run of the yard. I threw some pics in of the yard too. I wasn't planning on getting more chickens cus of the size of my coop but I couldn't resist. Right now I have 4 grown hens. Araucana, Brahma, ISA brown, & a Naked Neck. The 2 new ones are 10-12 week old polish girls. As you can see the pen I have them in is big for them and they are right up against the big coop. So I guess I should put more things in the yard for the little ones to hide and get away? Correct? They also all have free access under the deck for when the tree isn't giving shade during the first part of the day. Or during the rain but can get under there all day if they want to. Thanks again for taking the time to look at my setup. Criticize me... Its ok. Lol I eventually want to get a nice large coop for them to have more room for winter. They have no issues with the coop right now. There is actually plenty of room. & they all use the same nest to lay eggs even tho there are 3 lol at night i also find them all squished up over to one side and a bunch of room left so I am thinking 2 more wont hurt in there. Especially cus they are only in there overnight.
I hope this info helps you see a little more into my setup.
Have a great day!

 

[Ridgerunner]

I'm not going to jump on you for not following some perceived magic square feet number. If it is working it is working. I do think you'll have integration issues in that small coop. My juveniles tend to not sleep anywhere near the adults until they mature enough to be considered adults themselves. With mine that's usually about the time they start to lay. Until then, if they try to sleep on the main roosts a hen will often go attack them. Occasionally some juveniles can sleep in the far corner of my main roosts but often a hen will leave her corner to go peck them. Often that is the hen lowest in the pecking order. I just don't see any place they can sleep in that small totally enclosed area and be far enough away from the hens.

You mentioned getting a new bigger coop. If you or yours are handy enough or maybe you need a handyman but if you tear the floor out of that totally enclosed section and remove that interior wall you can enclose that entire coop/run area with paneling, plywood, or something else you can make that whole thing into a big coop. That could be significantly less expensive than buying something that is barely big enough for your six chickens. You may want to build a separate run so you can lock them up if you are throwing a party and don't want them roaming the back yard and pooping on things.

But what do you do right now? I think that yard is big enough that you don't need any more clutter. After housing those chicks in that enclosure a couple of weeks so they are used to it being home and they will return there to sleep, I'd let them out in that yard during the day with the others. Do it when you can observe them just in case. What I'd expect is that when they are out there together at first the two groups will get together, a juvenile will invade the personal space of an adult, and will get pecked. It will run away. The adult may or may not chase it a bit but will soon quit. In a very short time the two juveniles will learn to avoid the adults. If you were trying this in that teeny tiny enclosed run area I'd expect something totally different. At night they should both go to their own areas to sleep. Before you try anything else let them prove to you that they can coexist in that big area. And have a couple of widely separated food/water stations. Don't force them to get together so they can eat or drink.

Then comes the problem. If your coop section were bigger I'd say toss the two in at night and see what happens. But I don't think your coop will be big enough for the two to avoid the adults as they are settling in for the night. If you leave the pop door open all night (only if you consider that entire coop/run area predator safe) they can get away when they are awake but I don't think they will even try to go into that small enclosed area to go to sleep. They will be afraid of the big girls. I'd either fix up where they are sleeping now for winter or enclose that wire section with something permanent or temporary like a tarp. Wait until you get a bigger coop or they start laying to even try putting them to sleep together. During the day and as long as that entire yard is available I don't expect any real problems.

You may run into issues this winter when snow and weather locks them in that small coop section only but that's another post. Let's get you through tomorrow.