Broody Hen - I gave her fertilized eggs!

[SusanPC]

So far so good. The partition has been down for 1 week. Daisy and the other 2 hens are now hanging out together, roosting together, and acting like flock. The 8-week olds stay together and mostly stay out of the way of the big girls. I have 2 feeding and 2 watering stations, so everyone seems to be able to get enough access to food and water. The hens are not seeking out the young ones to chase, but if they wander too close, they get chased and pecked at, but the hens give up easily and the young ones are fast, so there hasn't been much actual contact. I haven't seen any feathers on the ground, and no obvious injuries to the pullets/cockerels. The more blatant aggression seems to have diminished. I think I'm in the clear, but continue to be observant and am a frequent visitor to their area. What an adventure this has been. I have learned a lot about chickens over the last 8 weeks!

 

[aart]

So far so good. The partition has been down for 1 week. Daisy and the other 2 hens are now hanging out together, roosting together, and acting like flock. The 8-week olds stay together and mostly stay out of the way of the big girls. I have 2 feeding and 2 watering stations, so everyone seems to be able to get enough access to food and water. The hens are not seeking out the young ones to chase, but if they wander too close, they get chased and pecked at, but the hens give up easily and the young ones are fast, so there hasn't been much actual contact. I haven't seen any feathers on the ground, and no obvious injuries to the pullets/cockerels. The more blatant aggression seems to have diminished. I think I'm in the clear, but continue to be observant and am a frequent visitor to their area. What an adventure this has been. I have learned a lot about chickens over the last 8 weeks!

Great!!
Aren't they fascinating?

 

[mamidei]

My broody got into 3 knock down drag out fights, pecking order stuff as she was low before, I broke them up and then there were no more.
Might as well get it over with.

I know, I'm working my way towards letting them battle it out. It'll be so much easier!

 

[mamidei]

So far so good. The partition has been down for 1 week. Daisy and the other 2 hens are now hanging out together, roosting together, and acting like flock. The 8-week olds stay together and mostly stay out of the way of the big girls. I have 2 feeding and 2 watering stations, so everyone seems to be able to get enough access to food and water. The hens are not seeking out the young ones to chase, but if they wander too close, they get chased and pecked at, but the hens give up easily and the young ones are fast, so there hasn't been much actual contact. I haven't seen any feathers on the ground, and no obvious injuries to the pullets/cockerels. The more blatant aggression seems to have diminished. I think I'm in the clear, but continue to be observant and am a frequent visitor to their area. What an adventure this has been. I have learned a lot about chickens over the last 8 weeks!

Did you work through the respiratory issues you were worried about with the chicks?

 

[SusanPC]

Regarding the respiratory issues, everyone cleared up and blood drawn from the adult hens was sent to the State poultry lab. Two of three tested positive for IB. The state vet said it was a mild strain and he was not too concerned about it, especially since everyone cleared up. We had to put down my BPR hen, but after necropsy results from the lab, he determined that her death was due to a globule inside her body attached to her crop and trachea - not the cold. I do still have the runt silkie who occasionally sneezes and seems lethargic. I expect to find her dead every morning, but she still lingers at 8 weeks. We had a little cooler spell last night and this morning she was huddled in a ray of sun, so I brought her inside to warm her up. She's 1/2 the size of the other 2 silkies.

I've been afraid to name her, but broke down today and call her "Baby"

 

[mamidei]

Regarding the respiratory issues, everyone cleared up and blood drawn from the adult hens was sent to the State poultry lab. Two of three tested positive for IB. The state vet said it was a mild strain and he was not too concerned about it, especially since everyone cleared up. We had to put down my BPR hen, but after necropsy results from the lab, he determined that her death was due to a globule inside her body attached to her crop and trachea - not the cold. I do still have the runt silkie who occasionally sneezes and seems lethargic. I expect to find her dead every morning, but she still lingers at 8 weeks. We had a little cooler spell last night and this morning she was huddled in a ray of sun, so I brought her inside to warm her up. She's 1/2 the size of the other 2 silkies.

I've been afraid to name her, but broke down today and call her "Baby"

Oh, she is SO cute! Glad the respiratory issue turned out to be mild. Every time I hear a sneeze or gurgle I think about all of the things I've read online that seem to be super extreme.
I think the cutest thing ever is watching the chicks ride on mom's back. I can't get enough!

 

[SusanPC]

Chicks jumping/riding/sitting on Mama Hens is the absolute cutest thing in the world! What an instinct those broody hens have! Just another update since I last mentioned I brought in the sickly small chick - Baby. Found lice last night on him/her! First experience with external parasites on my chickens and I freaked! Everyone and everything within chicken vicinity has been Sevin dusted and/or sprayed. After this I highly recommend Sevin dusting broody hens and nests. I'm not sure if it's safe to use with hatchlings, but the sickly silkie chick (who is about the size of a 3-week old chick at almost 9 weeks) got doused with the stuff. It was quite a chore to catch and treat the three hens and 8 other pullets/cockerels, replace all the coop bedding and nest material and treat all surfaces and litter, but it is done. Will be repeated in 7 days and I am going to add Sevin Dusting all chickens and chicken areas to some standard regimen (haven't decided a good timeframe yet) along with worming!

 

[mamidei]

I know, I'm working my way towards letting them battle it out. It'll be so much easier!

Babies and mom are all integrated into the flock. After the initial scuffles, there were no more problems.
My white sizzle hen is broody, so I got some fertilized Serama eggs for her to sit on. Here we go again!

hope things go as well as the first time around.

 

[mamidei]

Today's the day! My little Sizzle has some serama babies hatching today

such a thrill!

 

[holm25]