Broody Olivia No Longer Being Mama-Babies in Cold Cruel World Alone

[speckledhen]

My broody hen, Olivia, just snapped out of her motherly trance today, left her three chicks in the pen, squatted for my cockerel, Zane, even though he was in a separate pen and then left. I found an egg in the nestbox of the Firetower coop where they have been living together. SO, three 6-wk-old chicks are motherless as of today. We took Zane and Charlotte's little daughter Panda, her blue banty Cochin buddy and GLW in to meet the two-week-older chicks. They are back in a separate cage right now for the night, but tomorrow, I think the six will be living together.
Here's a couple of pics from my time in the pen, referreeing the little hoodlums. Here are Virginia and Victoria, the SLW girls, first. They are starting to look their breed now. The BR boy is Hawkeye's last son that I have, Mace. Couldnt get one of Panda that wasn't blurred badly.

 

[robinaggie]

How long do chickens generally stay with their babies?

 

[speckledhen]

It varies. My broody Sunny last year started rejecting them at about five weeks.

 

[speckledhen]

Well, Livvie is on the top roost bar in the main coop, right beside one of her sisters, Tux. Guess it's back to business as usual for Olivia.

 

[Farmer Kitty]

Awww, poor things, it's such a cruel world too! It's a good thing they have you!

 

[chilling in muscadine]

I have a game hen that left her biddie's at around 2 week's or less. She left them with the roo who is doing a wonderful job raiseing then. He even let's them sleep under him. Now that is something to see. Yesterday she hatched 6 biddie's out so I'm going to count the day's to see if she repeat's this process. I was going to add 2 hen's to there coop today but got to thinking that if I did that the roo wouldn't be mama anymore.

At 6 week's the baby's will be O.K. but they will still miss mama.

PEACE