Broody with a few pictures. and I need advice

[Backyard Hencam]

Your enthusiasm is making me excited. I hope this all works. Sounds like your hen will be a great Mom!

 

[karlamaria]

Since chicks will be confined near adults I recommend using a medicated feed at first with extra effort made to keep chicks off wet ground that may have been occupied by chickens in last year or two.

great suggestion! Thank you. We will be having the new pen built in the next 2 weeks, the snow and weather have been heck on trying to get the work done. When the pen is done we will be laying down 4 inches of new sand. We are hoping the chicks will be out there and in the new pen by then. We have 13 more days before there born, we will be keeping them indoors with mommy for at least 3 days so I think we are good to go ! The medicated food is what we had planned as we did this for our other girls, good to play it safe. We did not candle last night, we plan on doing this tonight. We are so excite ( but you all know the feeling I'm sure lol )

 

[karlamaria]

http://s13.postimage.org/etfj04duv/chicks_004.jpg

This is what we have so far, the chick looks like barred rock, or mixed with barred Rock. We shall see. Another is pipping now and 3 are still warm but no pis. Mama is doing wonderful!

 

[centrarchid]

Make certain chicks doing exploring either can not get out of box they are in or can easily get back in when the do get out. This will reduce risk of exposure when separated from momma.

Here is my first brood of season that includes 17 chicks, too many for hen to raise all without considerable intervention on my part.

 

[Mrs. K]

How odd. I do no interventions on my broodies part, other than give all my hens chick starter feed, and then add oyster shell for the layers. I don't separate them from the flock either. However, I do let mine free range every day so they are not confined tightly together.

You will have reintroduction problems if you keep them separated too long. I only separate mine for about the 24 hours of hatching.

A fence with openings large enough for the chicks, but to small for the hens, can provide an escape. However, if you have a good broody, she will keep them safe from the other hens.

MrsK

 

[centrarchid]

How odd. I do no interventions on my broodies part, other than give all my hens chick starter feed, and then add oyster shell for the layers. I don't separate them from the flock either. However, I do let mine free range every day so they are not confined tightly together.

You will have reintroduction problems if you keep them separated too long. I only separate mine for about the 24 hours of hatching.

A fence with openings large enough for the chicks, but to small for the hens, can provide an escape. However, if you have a good broody, she will keep them safe from the other hens.

MrsK

Not odd in least. I have raised litterally hundreds of broods over years and found free-ranging hens have a hard time rearing more than ten chicks per brood unless supplemental food is applied. My birds have access to several acres of land but hends with chicks seldom have a range that exceedes an acre. Hen must balance foraging with brooding as two activies conflict, especially with large broods where competition for food becomes a problem. If forage base poor, then even fewer chicks survive on average.

Your application of starter feed is my first level of intervention.

 

[karlamaria]

How odd. I do no interventions on my broodies part, other than give all my hens chick starter feed, and then add oyster shell for the layers. I don't separate them from the flock either. However, I do let mine free range every day so they are not confined tightly together.

You will have reintroduction problems if you keep them separated too long. I only separate mine for about the 24 hours of hatching.

A fence with openings large enough for the chicks, but to small for the hens, can provide an escape. However, if you have a good broody, she will keep them safe from the other hens.

MrsK

. These chicks are not staying, I have a separate coop at my moms they I'll go to. My coop is to small to have te mom raise with the other girls, no floor room for a nest and the best boxes are way to high. We are rectifying this and enlarging the coop .

 

[Mommy 2 Wee Ones]

Karlamaria, mine is similar to your situation. My hens were going into the nest box & sitting on Mama while she was Broody, there was no way the chicks would have made it in the main coop.
They are separate from the main flock only by welded wire, Daddy will come over to the run area from time to time to check on his hens. I tell him what pretty babies he made. lol
Because I have 3 young active dogs running in the back yard with the chickens, I want to wait till the chicks are older before I let them out with the others. I may not be keeping mine either.

Here are my latest that hatched this last week.

 

[karlamaria]

Oh those chicks are adorable! I pray moms chicks all hatch, we need ate least 4 ! I have 3 yet to go, crossing fingers! You did good! We also have 3 active little dogs, but my snauzzer will kill them so there taken out front, chickens have the back yard to them selves these days. I got a cute tiny coop with pen so mom and her babies will be heading there soon. It's so cold here right now I'm not chancing it. Last night it went down into the twentys. Snow rain ugh !

 

[karlamaria]

Well 6 weeks later and she is broody again! Ugh she goes nuts about two weeks before she goes broody, screaming and stretching her self, she laid eggs again after her chicks were 3 weeks old! Then one day the screaming came, and her weird dance and stretching. The chicks are on there own now and she is back at it ugh now dealing with her again screaming, and taking over the large nest box made for 3 birds. I now have 16 week old pullets, 6 week old chicks, 3 adult girls, and not sure I should let her hatch out more eggs. I know I'm lucky to have a brooder out of my three girls, but now going to miss that third egg lol.