Introducing New Chickens (or Chicks) to a Flock: Best Practices

Adding new chickens to your flock is fun and exciting, but it can also be stressful for all parties involved! Come learn how to carefully and gradually introduce new chickens to your existing flock for the most smooth and safe transition possible.

Before bringing home new chickens, it’s important to have a plan in place – along with any necessary supplies like extra fencing, additional food and water containers, or even a temporary coop.

This post will cover the best practices to introduce chicks, young pullets or adult chickens to a flock, including frequently asked questions about timing, age, feeding a mixed flock, dealing with bullies, and more.

RELATED: If you’re getting new chicks, don’t miss our ultimate list of over 500 cute and funny chicken names, or these 11 awesome DIY chick brooder ideas. Also learn how to ferment chicken feed to boost nutrition AND cut feed costs!

What is “The Pecking Order”?

Chickens can be mean girls! They are highly territorial, and can unfortunately be pretty darn agressive towards each other at times. Flocks develop a social hierarchy called “the pecking order”, which is literally enforced through pecking at one another.

The dominant top hens keep the lower ones in check and get their first choice at the feeder, roosts, nesting boxes, and mates. Chickens also tend to pick on sick or weak members of the flock. Especially if they see blood, chickens can continue to pick to the point of cannibalism.

Introducing new chickens to the flock disrupts the pecking order, leaving the newest and smallest members vulnerable to attacks by the older dominant birds as they establish a new social order. Therefore, the integration must be done slowly, carefully, and with patience!

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What age to introduce new chicks to a flock?

Never introduce new chicks younger than 8 weeks to an adult flock. They’re far too small and vulnerable to safely withstand an attack from a large hen, which could turn deadly. Plus, chicks under 8 weeks old are not yet fully feathered so it may be too cold for them to live fully outside with the others, nor would they be safe to free range.

If possible, wait until the young ones are at least 10 to 12 weeks old. The bigger, the better! The closer to the same size all the chickens are at the time of integration, the safer the new ones will be.

When we had a smaller coop and run, we would integrate new chicks into our flock around 8 weeks. Now in our larger space, we aren’t rushing it. Our current chicks are 12 weeks old. They intermingle with the adult hens for a few hours a day, but still sleep in their own coop and stay inside the fully enclosed run while the big girls free range in the uncovered chicken yard.

Can I add just one chicken to a flock?

If you can avoid it, don’t introduce just one new chicken to an existing flock. Even after a gradual introduction, it’s almost guaranteed they’ll be singled out and excessively picked on. Instead, add at least a few newbies of the same size at a time. That way, they’ll have their own little clique to pal around with.

The few exceptions where only one bird may be accepted are: 1) if the new and existing chickens are very young and a similar age (under 16 weeks old) or 2) you happen to have just a couple old, very gentle birds.

Also avoid adding a second rooster to your flock, unless you have an adequate hen-to-rooster ratio of at least 10 to 12 hens for every rooster. With very large or docile breeds, it may be possible to have one rooster for every 5 to 7 hens. One rooster will emerge as the dominant alpha.

Before Introductions: Look Don’t Touch

Whether you’re introducing new chicks, pullets, or adult chickens to your flock, it’s always best to implement the “look but don’t touch” method – where the two groups can see each other through fencing but not physically access one another – for at least a week or two before letting them co-mingle. The longer, the better! To do so, securely fence off a section of your chicken run or create a separate adjacent coop or pen.

This gives the older chickens time to get used to the presence of the newer ones without risk of injury, while letting the newcomers get used to their new space in a stress-free manner.

Quarantining new chickens that came from another farm or home (vs chicks you raised yourself) is also an important time to monitor and assess their health before introduction, including disease or parasites.

Space and Resources

Before adding to your flock, ensure there is plenty of roosting space and room to move around in both the coop and run. Bullying will be much more intense in confined, crowded areas.

It’s best practice to provide at least 3 to 4 square feet per chicken in the coop, 8 to 12 inches of roost space per bird, and no less than 10 square feet per chicken in the run. Offering free-range of an even larger space during the daytime (if safe) is ideal!

Chickens will compete for resources. Add additional food and water containers to reduce competition and stress. Also plan to have at least one nesting box for every four hens (even though they all usually favor and crowd the same ones). You may want to create an additional dust bath space too. Learn how to make a dust bath for chickens here.

Tips for Introduction Time

• After a couple of weeks in adjacent fenced spaces, go ahead and introduce the new chickens to the flock by letting everyone co-mingle together in the same area. I like to do this for short periods of time at first (especially since it needs to be supervised) and gradually increase the time spent together as they adjust.
  
  
• During the first few social mixers, offer treats as a fun distraction. For example, scatter scratch or mealworms on the ground, put out a couple treat blocks, or stuff wire baskets with lettuce. Spread them out so everyone isn’t fighting over the same pile of goodies!
  
  
• Since they can’t see in the dark, slipping new chickens into the coop at night can make for a smoother transition.
  
  
• Supervise the introduction, but know that some scuffles are expected and inevitable as the two flocks merge and establish their new pecking order. Try not to intervene unless the behavior is overly aggressive or causing injury.
  
  
• I recommend having styptic powder on hand for emergencies. Chickens are very attracted to the color red (including blood) and styptic powder or cornstarch quickly stops bleeding.

How long does it take for chickens to accept newcomers?

Most chickens should adjust to new flock members within a couple weeks. They’ll eventually all become accustomed to one another, but may continue to pal around with their original group the most.

The level of aggression and time required to get settled will vary from flock to flock, depending on the age and number of chickens involved, amount of space in the coop and run, and free range situation. Some introductions are surprisingly smooth (especially when the new or younger birds outnumber the older ones), while others can be a tad more hectic. See tips about how to deal with a relentless bully chicken below.

Feeding a Mixed Flock

Feeding a mixed-age flock of chickens can feel confusing. Young chicks and juvenile pullets should not consume layer feed since the high level of calcium is bad for their kidneys. Yet laying hens need extra calcium in order to safely lay normal eggs!

Therefore, the standard recommendation is to offer grower feed to a mixed flock of both laying hens and young pullets (and roosters). Grower feed is appropriate for chicks over 8 weeks old. To keep the older egg-laying hens healthy, also ensure there is a supply of free-choice calcium readily available (in a dish separate from the feed). Crushed eggshells or flaked oyster shells are both good sources of calcium for chickens. Learn important tips about baking eggshells for chickens here.

Once all the chickens are of laying age (around 18 weeks) gradually transition to layer feed. Continue to offer free-choice calcium on the side.

How to Deal with a Bully Hen

Every once in a while, a dominant hen may have an especially difficult time accepting newcomers. If one neurotic little weirdo is harassing others to the point of injury or nonstop stress, you may need to intervene. Particularly if the bully behavior persists for weeks past the initial introduction.

• Before all else, be sure you’ve already addressed the suggested practices we’ve discussed in this post: start introductions gradually, provide ample space, extra feeders or roosts, treats, free range time, and so on.
  
  
• Are several hens ganging up on one particular chicken? That could be a sign of illness or injury, since chickens will often pick on the weak. Do a wellness check to ensure everything is okay health-wise.
  
  
• Separating the bully hen for a few days can help to reset the pecking order and make her more chill once re-introduced. You could bring her inside in a crate with food and water, or keep her in a large dog crate or other enclosure with food and water within the run (and tuck her back into the coop each night after dark).
  
  
• Don’t separate the victim (unless medically necessary). It will only make her lower in the pecking order and more of a target once she returns.
  
  
• In order to keep the peace, some folks opt to maintain two separate flocks in different coops and runs long-term.
  
  
• If all else fails, re-homing the bully hen could be an option. As a newcomer in a new flock, they’ll start out at the bottom of the pecking order.

And that’s how to safely introduce new chickens to a flock!

Well fellow chicken tenders, I hope this answered all your burning questions about adding to your flock. If you found this post useful, please consider sharing it or leaving a comment below! Also feel free to share any helpful tips I may have missed, or ask any questions you may have. Thank you for tuning in today. Best of luck to you and your new little chicken friends!

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• Male or Female Chicks? 5 Ways to Tell the Difference
• How to Store & Wash Fresh Eggs: Best Practices for Backyard Chicken Eggs
• When Do Chickens Start Laying Eggs? 5 Tell-Tale Signs It’s Soon!
• How to Set Up a Chick Brooder: Temperature Chart and Supplies