Broody hen or brooder?

[ponchu]

My daughter has been asking for chicks. We have room for 3 more hens in our backyard.

The question is, if we get some fertilised eggs and let a broody hen look after them, can my daughter still handle the chicks after they are hatched, or will the mother hen fiercely guard the chicks?

We have 2 Australorps. They came from a vineyard where they were raised by a hen, and weren’t handled by people until we bought them as 12 week old pullets. They take treats from my hand, and one of them (the broody one) doesn’t mind being stroked as she takes the treat, but they definitely don’t like being picked up and held.

I want the new chicks to grow up less offish, so my daughter can hold them, or I can pick them up and move them more easily without a hassle when I need to. If the mother hen doesn’t like being handled, can her chicks be “tamed”, or you need to hand raise them from day one using a brooder?

I’m not very keen on the idea of raising chicks using a brooder - I feel sorry for the chicks growing up without a mum, and you need to get a heater and adjust it as you go etc etc. But if all my daughter can do is to look at the chicks from a distance, or if they grow up offish, then there’s no point in having chicks so young - we might as well get point-of-lay pullets instead.

Has anyone had “joint custody” with mother hen and raised chickens that don't mind being handled/cuddled? What are your thoughts?

Thanks

 

[featheredplanets]

Brooder. If you give your broody hens fertile eggs, you’ll be getting cockerels, you can’t put 3 eggs under them and expect 3 pullets. Hens are usually very protective, never had a hen who would willing let me hold her chicks. My favourite pullet raised some Polish, I thought “wouldn’t it be nice to hold one?”, picked it up and she took a chunk out of my arm. My dog usually gets the worst of it.
Brooding them yourself means your daughter has chance to watch them grow up close and build a bond with them. Broody hen raised chicks are naturally flightier.
I’d recommend looking into the diy mama heating pad for raising chicks, it’s safer, less stressful and more natural.
I’d also recommrnd going for naturally friendly chicken breeds, like silkies, orpingtons, pekins and cochins. Australorps are good but they’re not high on my kid friendly breed list.

 

[centrarchid]

I now handle all chicks from all my hens. It takes a little effort to get hens to calm down to allow handling and is worth it.

 

[ponchu]

I’d recommend looking into the diy mama heating pad for raising chicks, it’s safer, less stressful and more natural.
I’d also recommrnd going for naturally friendly chicken breeds, like silkies, orpingtons, pekins and cochins. Australorps are good but they’re not high on my kid friendly breed list.

Thank you for your post, I'll give mama heating pad a go. None of the heating pads sold in Australia that I checked online (Sunbeam or otherwise) allow you to disable the "auto off" function, though. The only product I can find without auto-off is a heating mat for dogs/cats. I'll pop into a pet shop and have a look. Silkies and Cochins may be good with kids, but I'm reluctant to add more hens that are known to be broody in my flock. I'd like to try Rhode Island Red, but their baby chicks may not be available around my daughter's birthday. Day-old Hy-Line Browns are in constant supply from a hatchery, so we might settle on them...

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Good advice already.

Mama heating pad wasn't my cup of tea and I almost killed a whole batch of chicks with it... by wrapping Saran wrap to try and keep it dry (instead of the press and seal stuff recommended, because I had it on hand)... which ended up being a big plastic balloon holding chicks inside to suffocate. Luckily my daughter heard them peeping and rescued them.

I use non light emitting heat bulbs. 100 or 150 watt inside my living room.

Since you can only have 3 more hens... I also wouldn't hatch anything.

I used to tolerate broody behavior, but recently discovered it is important to be able to handle them in the event of an emergency (like a chick being wrapped up in leg feathers and dragged around). So I have started working with my ladies and will be selecting for behavior in my future generations. It is definitely worth it... you also end up with friendlier chicks verses ones that mum taught to avoid you.

For your daughter... brooder is your best bet.

I also wouldn't add any more broody breeds... noting that I have in the past year seen broody sex links and leg horns. I like Easter Eggers, they make me feel like a kid everyday I get to go collect eggs and see what color I got. Barred rock are also mostly good in my experience. If possible, maybe get your daughter a couple different breeds. My first flock was a Red, a Rock, and an EE. It's nice to be able to tell them apart and their eggs. Makes for beautiful eye candy on pasture and easy to tell who is laying or who isn't.

Happy birthday to your daughter!