21 eggs under two inseparable bantams

Heya !

This is my first time hatching chicks and I'm desperate to get it right. Any advice would be most welcome

I have a mixture of silkie, Australasian, and wyandotte eggs all bantams, under 2 bantam orpingtons who are sat beautifully and who are inseparable. They have approx 2 weeks to go.

I have a run with small mesh for them to attach to their sitting coop, chick crumb, chick waterer (bought some marbles to pop in)
Do I need to get anything else ? Any vitamins or medicated food ?
The run is on grass and their bedding is hempcore and soft hay.
Do you think the mother's will be ok together or would it be wise to get another pen and sitting coop ready in case of any unladylike behaviour ?

Many thanks
Shabana xx

 

Thank you for your reply !

I will remove the hay in the coop and just stick with the hempcore when it's nearer the time in case they become tangled up in it. And I'll get some play sand too for the run as it can get pretty damp here in the UK.

I've read that bantams can hatch a little earlier at 19-20 days - is this right ?

Is there anything my 2 mother's will need as far as vitamins and so on ? They seem fine at the moment. They are eating and drinking very little but I do make sure they stretch their legs twice a day and do my best to get them to shovel as much down as they can in the 3-4 mins they give themselves before wanting to get back on the nest.

Many thanks
Shabana x

 

Just a little update

It was day 21 yesterday and on cue little beaks started to poke through
By evening I had 15 chicks - some I had to assist a little as the eggs were pretty hard I think due to the hot dry spell we've had here.
A couple were infertile and a couple hadn't made it to full term.

I cannot get over how magical yesterday was (it was my first time hatching and this is my first year keeping chickens).
Mabel and ginger are also first timers and are so lovely. I fed them breakfast in bed this morning bless um as yesterday they didn't leave the nest at all.
They are all fluffed up this morning and noisy. Their chick crumb and shallow water is by them when they are ready.
I'm so happy for my broodies I can't tell you. !

They look like a few of everything at the moment it's hard to tell. I will try to get a quick photo this afternoon.

Thanks for the advice given and the wealth of knowledge available on this site - it's meant they have had the best possible start xx

 

Here are Mabel and Ginger who are Orp banties doing a fab job and some of their babies

 

Thank you for your kind comments. I'm so proud of them all !!
They all seem to be doing really well and scoffing and zooming about
The weathers turned pretty fine here too so I think they might take them outside soon.
Can't wait to see them learn to scratch !