Can you put them in a wire cage on the outside of the pen the older chickens are in? Let them see them for several days, and then put the young ones in the coop at night after the older chickens have been in there a while and it is dark.

M

I've put then in as early as 6 weeks and as late as 10 weeks without incident. You may be OK to do it now......especially if they've had time to see each other like marquisella suggests.

They have seen each other, as the chick pen is a smaller inclosure that is inside my regular chicken pen. and today I sat with them for a bit and let the chicks out into the bigger pen with the grown hens. the older hens let the younger ones know who was boss but didn't acutally harm them. I am just afraid if I leave them to early I will come out one day to find a dead chick. I want to be really sure.

thanks for the advice, I think they are old enough, but am going to wait at least two more weeks to get the smaller ones time to grow a bit bigger. and let them out somemore with supervision. you wouldn't think a couple of weeks would add that much growth but they really grow very quickly.

thanks again

CI

new question, One Of my chicks is just gigantic. She is a leggorn. and feels so big when I pick her up, she feels like a sack of flour. S she is twice as big as the sexlink and the new hampshire red. Which at first didn't bother me since I thought it was just probably her breed, was just bigger. I am new at this chicken stuff. anwyay I had, had them seperated from the other grown hens in a smaller inclosure, and mixed them just this week, The problem if it is one, is that the leghorn has to sit down so much, Like she doesn't have the energy to keep going. she walks a bit then rests the other two don't do this. I know she is big but is she too big. or am I just looking for somthing to worry about. I am in South Carolina and it is boiling hot here, she doesn't have all her feathers yet. her crop is giangatic, last nite I put her to roost and she can barely balance herself on the bar she is sooooo BIG.

today I took away the feed and plan to just feed them around 4 pm instead of leaving their feed out all day. they have plenty of room to range and get treats all the time.

CI

CI, are you sure she's a leghorn? They tend to be a pretty small breed. Is it possible that you got a meat chicken mixed in your group somewhere?

I don't know anything about chickens, but it sounds as if she is overweight. I'm not sure though, maybe it's just her breed and you have a different kind than you thought like amiz5904 said.

So you've let them all out together now? Do you keep them as pets or ??

Genny

I wonder what else she could be? I was told she came from the hatchery. I bought her from the feed N seed store.
Yes just pets. I have seven right now, but plan on giving two of my game hens away.

She has yellow legs and feet and white feathers she is just much bigger then the other two chicks supposedly her same age. well I hope she doesn't have a heart attack

CI

Some feed store get meat birds mixed in with their other chickens, sadly they wont live long because of that rapid growth you are seeing. The heart cannot keep up with the body growth and eventually they die of congestive heart failure. Unless you put that bird on a diet right now, it wont last long. I have kept meat birds ( cornish X) birds going for 18 months, but it takes a watchfull eye, they dont know when to quit eating. What happens is that that overfilled crop puts pressure on the carotid artery, which causes the heart to work harder to pump blood to the head, this enlarges the heart, eventually the valves start leaking and you have your progressive heart failure. Your best bet is controlled feeding for the life of the bird. Good luck.

She does sound like a meat bird. Leghorns are an elegant breed, active and flighty. Exactly the opposite of everything you say about her.

If you are okay with it, the best thing to do would be to cull her for the table. If you don't find that acceptable, I suggest you follow Enid's advice.

I would just feed her at a certain time and just wouldn't leave the food out at all times anymore. I've thought about getting a couple chickens at times, but I haven't yet. I just don't know how my ducks would react to some.

Oh, I could never eat her LOL. Mine are strictly pets and eggs. As of today I have started just feeding my hens in the evenings and then taking up the feed when they bed down for the nite. I have already had one with a prolapse. Can ya tell I'm a southern homemaker if its sad mad happy or tired I feed it. LOL

I am very upset though, I really wanted a leghorn. do you think this one will ever lay eggs. and how much time do you think I can get her to live, is 18 months it.

CI

If she is a Cornish Cross, she sure won't make it to 18 months. I really doubt if she can do 18 weeks. I have heard of some that make it to 12 weeks and are the size of a turkey when they are processed but that is unusual. The heart usually won't give the bird that much time. Sorry!

I know you don't want to eat your pets, but wouldn't that give the poor thing a purpose?

If she really is a meat bird, it's pretty unlikely that she'll lay eggs for you but it has been know to happen. If in fact it does, I wouldn't expect more than one or two before she reaches the end of her lifespan.

Have you looked at pictures on feathersite.com to compare her to? If she has a short beak, really thick widely spaced legs than she is surely a meat chicken. They are pathetic. I raised a few to 10 weeks and then I just couldn't take looking at them anymore.

Actually she isnt' that bad to look at, she has really beautiful white wings that look like angel wings when she stretches. Thats her name angel.

I tried finding some pictures of meat chickens online but they just don't have that many. It so hard to tell. *sigh* well she is at least 8 weeks now. and except for the sitting down a lot she seems healthy. My plan right now is to restrict her diet and enjoy her as much as we can until the end. Maybe we all will get a bit lucky.

I just can't eat anything I have looked inthe eye. LOL

I will definetly look at this as a learning experience.

thanks for all the advice.

CI

I am new @ this so just bare with me. I have been looking @ this forum for about 2-weeks. It has brought me great joy reading about everyones animals. It reminds me of my little place in Ohio. I am currently overseas in an extremely "hot" environment. Reading your stories takes me back home for a little while anyway.

We have Boar / Alpine goats, Rhoad Island Red chickens, Yorkshire pigs during the summer (fair projects),(2) Mallard ducks that won't leave our creek and a Tenn walking horse. Plus (5) cats (depending on the week) they are always having kittens (and my daughter always wants to keep averyone of them) and (2) dogs.

I am reaserching raising meat rabbits so I will need some help from you guys in the future.

My wife and kids are taking care of our little valley while I am away (and doing very well if I might add). She has managed to hatch out a bunch of RI chicks. My kids supply our church with all the eggs they need. She also has almost doubled the goat herd while I have been gone. She said birthing the goat kids was one of the most awesome experiences of their lives. Please keep them in your prayers.

Now to your little delimna, CI. I am 100% agreement with the majority on this. You have yourself a Cornish Cross. We buy about 50-chicks a year to raise and put in the freezer. My kids also take meat chickens to the fair. The Fair Board supplies a pen of (10) chicks and by (8) weeks they are a good 6 - 9 lbs, depending how much you feed them. I have read some about these chickens and they are bred for meat and will get bigger and bigger until they can't physically get any bigger. Then they go to the farm in the sky.

Sorry.

buckeye, your valley sounds like heaven. S

I really hate it about my pullet though. she is so pretty with all those snowy white feathers. where she has feathers anyway. LOL everytime I look at her my heart just hurts, cause I know she isn't going to make it very long. *sigh* I have good mind to call that guy that sold her to me as a leghorn. my husband who doesn't know anymore then i do about chickens, said as soon as we brought her home their was something wrong with her. LOL she didn't have any feathers and her crop stuck out so far I thought she had a tumor LOL and she was just sooooo different looking then the other chicks.

I am certainly learning so much from my backyard flock.

thanks again for all the info I will more then likely post on her progress.

CI