any day now

[huntingirl]

my production red has surprisingly been broody for 2 months. we found out because we cracked open two eggs with partially formed chick. well anyways, they should hatch any day now. its our first hatch.
so...
we built a 6x6 pen in the huge run for the mama and her babies. we were going to put them all up in the coop with our two other hens at night. will they attack them?

we are leaving Thursday and a neighbor is coming once a day to take care of them. what do I tell her to do?

please tell me EVERYTHING I need to know.

thanks in advance!

 

[crash0330]

Other hens will not attack the babies, unless there is not enough food for all of them. I've had hens hatch chicks and they stay together with the full grown adults and they do just fine, mom will protect them and teach them to stay out of the older hens way.
I did have at one point a very aggressive rooster who would kill the little babies, but got rid of him.
Maybe have your neighbor check on the chicks make sure the have accessible water and feed at all times, make sure that you don't leave deep waterers where the babies might get stuck and drawn.
Also depending on where you live, if it's too hot maybe provide some kind of ventilation.

 

[huntingirl]

thankyou!!!! what about pasty butt? she cant be there often. ive read you should check them every few hours. that scares me a bit because of how frequently she can be there.

 

[huntingirl]

also, how do I know when they are starting to hatch?

thanks agin!

 

[huntingirl]

anybody?

 

[Choco Maran]

unless you lift the hen you will not be able to tell. once you see the baby you will know. What day are they on.

 

[crash0330]

also, how do I know when they are starting to hatch?

thanks agin!

It's not a good idea to lif the hen and disturb her while the chicks are hatching. Sometimes that might disturb her sitting on the eggs and she might get up and leave with the first chicks that hatch and she might leave the unhatched chicks there and they might die. Also it might lower the ideal humidity levels needed for the chick to break out of the shell, you will know once thet hen is out with the chicks, shouldn't take more then a day from the first chick that hatches to the last one, but sometimes it takes up to 2 days.
As far as pasty butt, not a lot of chicks raised by hens get it, the only thing is checking them like you said and just try rubbing some warm water on their bottoms so that their poop falls off easily.

 

[huntingirl]

oh thank yall sooooooo much you have no idea how stressed I am since we wont be home.

im not really sure what day shes on. the other two hens had been laying in the same box she was brooding in for about a week. we would have stopped it earlier but we didn't know she was broody until we boiled the two eggs with chicks in them

then we left the eggs alone. the first few should be about 18 to 20 days along. not completely sure though.
ill take any other useful info and tips for my neighbor. (she will be doing the chickens once a day for 6 days.)
im reallllllllly uneasy about not being there because of predators, so if you have anything reassuring please share.

 

[huntingirl]

one of my other hens is in the other laying box with unfertilized eggs. there was another egg that was poking out from under the broody hen. my other hen took the egg poking out and is sitting on it with the nine unfertilized ones. is she broody now? her comb has been redder but she hasnt been noisy except for when she is in the coop. thanks