And there's a new twist in the tale. An old piece of metal I had pulled from a shed to cover the brooder had mites on it. Different brooder box has been found, and treatment has been applied to new box and the hen and chick.
Thanks for the reassurance. :) I'm really not sure, but they probably would have been just as likely to die if I had moved them really early on.
I don't think the hen went anywhere. This happened overnight.
Two of the chicks were found on the floor below the nestboxes dead this morning. I have absolutely no idea what happened. There was a small platform with food and water by the nestbox, there was no need for either of the chicks to jump down. I'm not sure if they fell out, or died and were kicked...
Okay, one of the chickies was running around on the small platform outside the nestbox, pecking at bits of chick feed I had sprinkled out there. It is currently next to--not under--its mom in the nestbox. Does it need water? I had a small dish of water out on the little platform. Would it be...
Thanks for all your help!
I'm going to play this by ear. If it doesn't look like anyone wants to get down from the nestbox to the food, I may move them down. If the other birds are acting aggressive, I may create an enclosure within the coop. For now, the other birds are out in a covered run and...
Thanks you for your help! So should I create some form of ramp from nestbox to ground? Otherwise, I can't see this being much of a problem...our coop is pretty level, with food and water a few inches off ground to prevent it from getting nasty. I made sure the chicks could reach the water and...
Alright, thank you for your help! I think for now I will live and let live, finish cleaning the coop, and check on them often. Are there any signs of trouble I should look out for?
Thanks,
Earlybird
Thank you Ridgerunner! The reason I liked my broody in the first place was because I liked the idea of having chicks without a brooder indoors.
Right now I have three options I am considering.
1. Live and let live. Put out medicated chick feed and trust my hen's mothering instincts.
2. Put them...
Hi,
A few weeks ago one of my hens went broody. I didn't expect anything to actually be able to hatch because it was actually below zero, but I left the eggs under her anyway.This morning I lifted up the broody to discover three small chicks. They're in a nestbox right now, and the other...