Colorado

[maggiemo]

I will concede your point, but I think if we are raising something for the purpose of killing and eating it, we have a certain duty to the creature to take its life humanely. There are many opinions on what constitutes humanely killing a chicken, I will grant that, I just don't see using big rocks on the list.

I too will concede the general point. But, they raised 4-H meat birds, and in my opinion, I think we have evolved past using rocks past using rocks to harvest animals.
Nuff said.

 

[maggiemo]

I'm hoping I have a broody hen. For the past two nights she has slept in a nest box rather than roosting and she spent most of today there too. She doesn't shriek at me when I come near but she is making a lot of soft clucking sounds that she never used to and puffs up her feathers. If she is truly broody I would like to see if she'll adopt the chicks I'll get from Kiowa feedstore on April 6. Any advice?

I have 'grafted' chicks to broody hens a few times too. The only advise I would give it to get the chicks no older than 3 days. I got some chicks one time, 2 were 2 days old and 2 were 3 days old. The 3 day old chicks took a long time to figure out to go under the broody to say warm. They kept running around and the broody would say with the 2 younger chicks and I had to keep sticking the older chicks under her. It only took a few times but I could tell they didn't imprint as quickly. At least for me and my broody.
Good luck and keep us posted!

 

[Ashdoes]

I'm hoping I have a broody hen. For the past two nights she has slept in a nest box rather than roosting and she spent most of today there too. She doesn't shriek at me when I come near but she is making a lot of soft clucking sounds that she never used to and puffs up her feathers. If she is truly broody I would like to see if she'll adopt the chicks I'll get from Kiowa feedstore on April 6. Any advice?

Our Silkie has gone broody twice, but the second time it was too close to winter so we got chicks for her. She was such a dedicated mama we put the chicks with her in the middle of the day and she pushed them right up under her belly. I was amazed. I think the smart move is to wait till night time, so she wakes up to them. Till then a few golf balls should keep her happy.

 

[maggiemo]

I had read to give the broody the chicks at night, but I didn't want to keep going out in the dark and trying to figure out if they were all under her.
I have done this three times, all in the middle of they day and the broody took them all three times.

Let us know what you do!

 

[Dnetschke]

My favorite one is on the right. She has really nice markings.

 

[renzanity]

Hi all my fellow Coloradans! Lakewood here and just found out that we can have hens. Excited to get started!

 

[saellis]

She is probably broody. I've had some australorps that make great moms. Give it a few more days and you will know.

She's still on the nest. I put a fake egg near her and she immediately tucked it under her. All real eggs have been removed. None of them could have been fertile anyway. She's usually such a sweet girl but she gave me the stink eye today.

 

[suncatcher]

She is probably broody. I've had some australorps that make great moms. Give it a few more days and you will know.

She's still on the nest. I put a fake egg near her and she immediately tucked it under her. All real eggs have been removed. None of them could have been fertile anyway. She's usually such a sweet girl but she gave me the stink eye today.

Looks like she is broody, I added chicks to my broody hen late in the evening, checked on them once or twice before I went to bed. By morning, she was a proud momma! I tried it during the day, but she kept pecking at them, so did it after dark.

 

[cluckcluckgirl]

Hi all my fellow Coloradans! Lakewood here and just found out that we can have hens. Excited to get started!

Welcome to BYC and the thread!

 

[Aacre]

Hi all my fellow Coloradans! Lakewood here and just found out that we can have hens. Excited to get started!

Congrats! Welcome! How exciting!