Broody mama tried to ditch her 5 week old babies.

[mamaj323]

It didn't work! LOL!

They used the nesting boxes as a step to jump to the highest roost to join her! I have a few older girls a bit miffed that their spot is occupied!

 

[iwiw60]

Chickens can be determined at times...case in point!!

 

[RJSorensen]

A very interesting photograph, thank you for sharing it. I got a good chuckle this morning…

RJ

 

[bawkbawkbawk]

My bantam d'Uccle is currently mothering three standard-size chicks. I know they will outgrow her before they are ready to give up their mama - it will be interesting to see how THAT goes!

I had a BO who mothered five chicks a few years ago and by the time they were five or six weeks old and still trying to get under her on the roost at night, she was OVER IT! Reminded me of how I felt with teenagers...

 

[IttyBiddyRedHen]

Yep. 5 weeks seems to be the norm for that. Out of 3 hatches so far....they were all "weaned" at 5 weeks. Mama still hung in the sidelines watching...but she no longer mothered them. She also allowed the other hens and pullets to discipline them. She wouldn't look at them when the hens had to do that.

 

[centrarchid]

Mine cease clucking at five weeks and spend time away from current brood especially when concerned about subsequent brood (laying eggs). This continues until about a day before going broody when she becomes aggressive to previous brood and then goes broody on clutch. Chicks / juveniles roosting and foraging with hen until restart of broodiness is typical.

 

[Mommy 2 Wee Ones]

Tonight Mama, who has been let out this week and away from her chicks during the day, went to bed, back in the coop with her mates. The chicks were born June 11th, so they are at the 5 week mark, and it looks like Mama is done.

 

[centrarchid]

Tonight Mama, who has been let out this week and away from her chicks during the day, went to bed, back in the coop with her mates. The chicks were born June 11th, so they are at the 5 week mark, and it looks like Mama is done.

I assume the rooster is not roosting close to chicks now? That is the typical arrangement I see when hen weans and commits to a second brood, for the next five weeks or so the juveniles then associate with their father unless the number of hens is high. High usually means more than three.

 

[goodb]

I had 2 experiences with broodies this year. The 1st was an EE who let hers go at about 3.5 weeks. The second never got the chance to finish as she gave her life to a hawk defending her chicks. They were about 4 weeks old. Fortunately, the older chicks "adopted" the babies and now they hang out together.

 

[centrarchid]

Some let them go early which can be problematic. My American Dominiques are prone to abandon chicks to resume laying after only two weeks of brooding. As a result my breeding season for those does not start until June. It is those early abandoned chicks that are a real pain in the butt to raise because they tend to be treated like outcasts.