Broody hens still doting on 12 week old chicks?

[Immensely_Confused]

Hi! At the end of August, two of our hens hatched a pair of chicks, and have been co-parenting since. They were slowly but very peacefully reintegrated with the flock, and everything has gone well. The hens have never fought, and the chicks are happy.
However, the hens are still very attached to the 12-week-old chicks?
One of the hens, Sage, has graduated to sleeping back in the coop at night with her friends, but still treats these almost fully grown chickens as chicks during the day. They're both larger than her.
The other one, Bobby, still sleeps with the chicks, shows them food, is loud when she can't see them, and generally sticks with them 24/7. She still makes the same vocalizations with them that she did when they were tiny, and still insists on them sleeping in the barn instead of the coop. I'm pretty sure they haven't even been roosting at night, just sleeping in a puddle on the ground.
It's not as if the other chickens have been bullying them, and there is space in the coop. The other chickens like the chicks, and have been nothing but sweet to the mother hens.
Previously, when we had broodies, they left their chicks after they were feathered out, so at about 3-7 weeks depending on time of year. Though it might be important to note that Bobby, the more attached mother hen, did kind of take care of the chicks from the other broodies after their mothers had left them. After the other hens stepped back, she helped out the teenagers.
Is this normal? When can we expect to see the hens step back, and the chicks get some independence?

 

[Shadrach]

Hi! At the end of August, two of our hens hatched a pair of chicks, and have been co-parenting since. They were slowly but very peacefully reintegrated with the flock, and everything has gone well. The hens have never fought, and the chicks are happy.
However, the hens are still very attached to the 12-week-old chicks?
One of the hens, Sage, has graduated to sleeping back in the coop at night with her friends, but still treats these almost fully grown chickens as chicks during the day. They're both larger than her.
The other one, Bobby, still sleeps with the chicks, shows them food, is loud when she can't see them, and generally sticks with them 24/7. She still makes the same vocalizations with them that she did when they were tiny, and still insists on them sleeping in the barn instead of the coop. I'm pretty sure they haven't even been roosting at night, just sleeping in a puddle on the ground.
It's not as if the other chickens have been bullying them, and there is space in the coop. The other chickens like the chicks, and have been nothing but sweet to the mother hens.
Previously, when we had broodies, they left their chicks after they were feathered out, so at about 3-7 weeks depending on time of year. Though it might be important to note that Bobby, the more attached mother hen, did kind of take care of the chicks from the other broodies after their mothers had left them. After the other hens stepped back, she helped out the teenagers.
Is this normal? When can we expect to see the hens step back, and the chicks get some independence?

I'm not sure if there is such a thing as a normal when it comes to hens raising chicks. If everyone is getting along I can't see anything to worry about.
Sometimes the hen restarting egg laying triggers the broody off switch, but I've known hens take their chicks to the nest, or leave them with dad,and lay their eggs and go back to being mum for the chicks.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I've had hens wean their chicks at 3 weeks. I've had hens wean their chicks at 3 months, about where yours are now. I haven't seen it myself but some people on here have said their broody hen stayed with the chick even after the chick was grown and laying eggs.

Each chicken has its own personality. They are not programmable bots where they all act exactly the same. You never know what a living animal will do.

Is that behavior upsetting the peace of your flock? Is it causing any problems? If it is, then you need to do something. But if not, I just don't see the problem. As long as it is peaceful and no one is getting injured I consider it a win.

12 weeks isn't all that unusual. If it goes on until spring you may have some interesting stories to tell.

 

[FrostRanger]

Sounds like you have some amazing broodies, I'd let them hatch again, they sound like absolute treasures!

 

[Perris]

Hi! At the end of August, two of our hens hatched a pair of chicks, and have been co-parenting since. They were slowly but very peacefully reintegrated with the flock, and everything has gone well. The hens have never fought, and the chicks are happy.
However, the hens are still very attached to the 12-week-old chicks?
One of the hens, Sage, has graduated to sleeping back in the coop at night with her friends, but still treats these almost fully grown chickens as chicks during the day. They're both larger than her.
The other one, Bobby, still sleeps with the chicks, shows them food, is loud when she can't see them, and generally sticks with them 24/7. She still makes the same vocalizations with them that she did when they were tiny, and still insists on them sleeping in the barn instead of the coop. I'm pretty sure they haven't even been roosting at night, just sleeping in a puddle on the ground.
It's not as if the other chickens have been bullying them, and there is space in the coop. The other chickens like the chicks, and have been nothing but sweet to the mother hens.
Previously, when we had broodies, they left their chicks after they were feathered out, so at about 3-7 weeks depending on time of year. Though it might be important to note that Bobby, the more attached mother hen, did kind of take care of the chicks from the other broodies after their mothers had left them. After the other hens stepped back, she helped out the teenagers.
Is this normal? When can we expect to see the hens step back, and the chicks get some independence?

Everything you describe has happened and I would call normal behaviour here. Looking forward, broody and chicks just drift apart when they are ready for independence as ordinary members of the flock.

 

[RoyalChick]

My broody Tassels raised four chicks I gave her this summer. They are now 16 weeks old and she is finally letting go.
She returned to laying a while ago but was still a very much in-control mother.
Those poor little ones wanted to roost for weeks before she would let them!
The first sign that she was letting them become independent was when I provide blueberries and she snuck the odd blueberry for herself rather than giving every single one to the kids.
Now at 16 weeks they are independent and fight their own battles (she has stopped going after any hen that showed bad temper to one of her babies) but she still hangs out with them at times during the day.

Edited to add: this is my first experience with a broody raising chicks and both @Perris and @Shadrach have oodles more experience, but I can empathize with you having first time worries about this!

 

[BDutch]

Last year I had 2 old broodies who hatched 3 chicks. After about 2 months they started to roost in the small prefab coop. Not with the flock in the extension where the other 4 hens roost.
One hen got injured and quits. But the other 11 year old hen is still mothering and moves with her ‘offspring’ to a new coop, I build for them because they were not welcome to roost with the flock.
After about 4 months she stopped mothering, but kept sleeping with her ‘offspring’ for a long time. She never started to lay ever after. Which is no surprise at 11 yo.

From the beginning: https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...breeding-projects-5-🪺-🪺-and-6.1574045/page-61

 

[Mrs. K]

Mrs. Feathers was a mother for 3 months. There were nearly as big as her, trying to get under her wing.

A trick I learned a long time ago, was at about 3-4 weeks, I laid a 12 inch wide board across my roosts. Within days, the broody mama would get her chicks up there at night. And they would snuggle under her on the board. I always felt it kept the bond a bit longer, which I thought was a good thing, as the urge to brood did not fight with the urge to roost.

Generally speaking, they roosted next to her till they started laying.

Mrs K

 

[LuciferRoo]

I've had a hen go about 3 months. She has gone broody every year over last 3 years.
I remember being surprised that the chicks were still with her at about the 3 month point and then suddenly she changed. It was like someone flipped a switch.
Once she was done, she would peck at them to go away. Not so aggressive as to cause injury, but she definitely did not want them around.

I think that was her first time hatching out a clutch. Next year, she did not stay a mom that long.

 

[Mrs. K]

We professional keep cow calf pairs, between cows, chickens and humans I have noticed an incredible difference in mothering. We have had cows lick a calf to the point I didn't think there would be hair left on the calf by morning. Other cows jump up, give a lick and a promise, and will have that calf 7 miles from where she calved by morning.

I have seen broody hens, keep her chicks till she was broody again, and have had others just forget they are her chicks by week three.

I am blessed that my grandchildren have good mothers, but as a teacher, I have seen a lot of other kinds of mothers.

Motherhood is not always like a hallmark card.

Mrs K