Broody again!

[Mama_in_the_Dell]

This has been the year of broodies in my flock. I ran out of places for them and finally just let the last couple hens keep them with the flock. The hen that started it all left her chicks 2 or 3 weeks ago. Well the other day she started sitting again! I have never been able to successfully break a broody and will be going out of town in a couple days so I’m limited by that. I’ve never had a hen decide to brood twice let alone twice in one season. Will this be too hard on her? I really don’t need more chicks. Maybe she just feels like she missed out because she raised her babies in a pen and sees these other moms running all around the yard with theirs.

Picture is of her with her first babies.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

They can hatch multiple broods a season if they are in good enough condition. Some hens take care of chicks longer than others. I've had some mother them for months, and others abandon their chicks at 5-6 weeks.

 

[Mama_in_the_Dell]

They can hatch multiple broods a season if they are in good enough condition. Some hens take care of chicks longer than others. I've had some mother them for months, and others abandon their chicks at 5-6 weeks.

Months?!?! All mine have stopped around 4-5 weeks. Even the ones that raised them in with the flock. I figured she’d stay with them longer but they hatched May 14th (4 weeks tomorrow) and she seems to be by herself a lot today. Her chicks are quite independent except a few that have latched on to another hen with younger chicks. They were going back and forth.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It is funny to watch nearly full grown chicks trying to get under their mom.

 

[Mama_in_the_Dell]

I took this today as it started raining. Some of those are hers and some are the 4 week olds.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

How adorable.

I currently have 6 batches of bantam chicks. 21 in total. All the chicks run together at times. My bantam hens would raise multiple batches a year if I let them. They are broody machines.

 

[Duckbreeder2020]

How adorable.

I currently have 6 batches of bantam chicks. 21 in total. All the chicks run together at times. My bantam hens would raise multiple batches a year if I let them. They are broody machines.

Ooh fun, what kind of bantams?

 

[Duckbreeder2020]

I took this today as it started raining. Some of those are hers and some are the 4 week olds.

Very cute

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Ooh fun, what kind of bantams?

Cochins mostly, with a couple of d'uccle, Easter eggers, and mixes of those breeds. My roosters are calico Cochin.

 

[Duckbreeder2020]

Cochins mostly, with a couple of d'uccle, Easter eggers, and mixes of those breeds. My roosters are calico Cochin.

I have a bantam calico Cochin rooster to sounds fun!