Hi everyone. One of my hens went broody and the eggs are due to hatch early next week! Problem is, I've never done this before and am not sure what to do. Should I take the babies after they hatch and put them in a brooder inside the house, or should I leave them with Mom? Right now they're in a nest box inside a fairly large coop. The nest box is about 1 ft. x 1.5 ft. and is about 1.5 to 2 ft. off the floor. For bedding it's got pine shavings and DE. Other chickens sleep in there at night but I do have another smaller coop they would all fit in. Assuming I leave the babies with Mama, should I move them all to the smaller coop after they hatch? Will Mama get mad if I touch her babies or any unhatched eggs? It's still getting down to the low 40s here at night and there's no electricity out in the coop although something could be rigged up for a warming light. What do you think? One last question: after Mama starting setting, the other hens continued to lay eggs in her nest box and she's now setting on about 18 eggs. I usually only get 6-8 eggs a day, so obviously they will not all hatch on the same day since they weren't all laid on the same day.....so, does Mama know that? Will she continue to set on the eggs till they all reach the proper hatch date?
Thanks so much for any and all help!!!!
Thanks so much for any and all help!!!!
