My polish hen went broody and today the eggs started hatching, right on schedule! The problem is that I had to take the first chick away from her because she got off her nest and started pecking at it. I have another that pipped an hour ago, is she going to kill the chicks? She I just take them away from her?
Colorado
- Thread starter tsgreer
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Is she a first time broody? She may not know what to do. I have two wonderful broody hens but they both needed two days or so confined with the chicks the first time. They didn't really know what they were supposed to do. On their second rounds they knew right away what was expected. On the flip side, I had one broody kill a chick. It was a single chick hatched from the incubator; none of her eggs hatched. I took all the eggs but she kept sitting and didn't bond with the chick. Came home from work and she had killed it. I know because it's bottom beak was broken off. 
I don't think there is any way to know how they will react. I suggest giving her some time to see what she does. It's a risk but I think broody raised chicks fair a lot better. Good luck. 
I don't think there is any way to know how they will react. I suggest giving her some time to see what she does. It's a risk but I think broody raised chicks fair a lot better. Good luck. This is her first time going broody and I could tell she was confused by the chick. One had just piped ans had a fairly good size hole and she pecked the egg and it started bleeding, I took it in with the other chick, but the brooder wasn’t humid enough for the egg to progress much and it just started drying out. I think the chick will be okay, but I’m pretty worried about the rest of the chicks as they hatch. I have two chicks in the brooder now and she has eggs that should be hatching around Thursday. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see. Poor babies.Is she a first time broody? She may not know what to do. I have two wonderful broody hens but they both needed two days or so confined with the chicks the first time. They didn't really know what they were supposed to do. On their second rounds they knew right away what was expected. On the flip side, I had one broody kill a chick. It was a single chick hatched from the incubator; none of her eggs hatched. I took all the eggs but she kept sitting and didn't bond with the chick. Came home from work and she had killed it. I know because it's bottom beak was broken off.
Yeah it’s unfortunate that it’s the kind of thing you just have to try. In order for her to learn they have to be with her but that also puts them in danger.
If the other eggs aren’t due to hatch for a couple more days I would take the chick(s). If she decides to care for them she would have to abandon the eggs or she would ignore them in order to sit on the eggs.
If the membrane is dry the chick is likely stuck because if can’t spin around to zip. Watch to see if it makes any progress. If it were me, I would probably only wait about 12 hours and then start helping it.
If the other eggs aren’t due to hatch for a couple more days I would take the chick(s). If she decides to care for them she would have to abandon the eggs or she would ignore them in order to sit on the eggs.
If the membrane is dry the chick is likely stuck because if can’t spin around to zip. Watch to see if it makes any progress. If it were me, I would probably only wait about 12 hours and then start helping it.
I wussed out and helped it. Thankfully it had already absorbed the yolk. It seems a little wonky, but I guess only time will tell. I have one more peeping in the egg. It would be best if it hatched tonight and I could get it when it’s finished. That will give the others time to finish growing. I was so proud of her so I’m sad she doesn’t like the chicks. Maybe she will be more accepting in a few days. I got a silkie earlier this past spring, hopefully she will make a better momma.
The one that seems a little weak is an Easter Egger and the other two are buff Orpington EE mix. The little mix (Puppet) is wild as a March hair. 
The other three I got from EBay. I ordered six, but only three have made it.
emrya
Songster
so anyone ever been to a chicken race? I have never heard of such a thing but apparently this Saturday at the Black Forest Festival there will be chicken races along with the rest of the festival. I'm dragging my husband and kid to go watch!
I saw that too! Lol. Do attendees bring their own birds? And I read that they have "chicken baby sitters" during the down time. How interesting. It'll be good to watch this time around...sounds entertaining...
When I saw that, it made me wonder about the chicken mingling... I feel like it is bad for chickens to mingle with other birds from other flocks... Isn't it? (Disease transmition, etc?)
(PS - I'll be teaching/hosting the barn dance in the evening! Drag them to that for some dancin' too!)
emrya
Songster
I imagine it's like 4H/Fair stuff where you really should keep the racers isolated for 30 days.
The chicken baby sitters made me giggle too. The lady who told me about it said it was BYOB, not pick from the contestants already there.
I'm just looking to get some in-person experience. There's only so much reading you can do before you wanna dive in! I'm looking to learn things like differentiating their sounds and behaviors. What constitutes normal and what makes you go, "Hmm.. something might be up..."? What does an "average" day look like for someone who has a few birds? What does the coop actually look like in person? What do you (broad "you") like about it? What don't you like about it? How much hauling of supplies (food, water, etc) do you need to be able to do? How much physical work does it take? How do you pick up a bird (if you do)? What does your bio-security look like? What has worked, what hasn't? What do you consider to be most important and what might be overkill? How have you handled predator-proofing? What does that look like?
These are all questions I've googled and read about, but there's just so much that I feel like I could learn offline. I was hoping to find someone local who might be willing to show me some of the ropes. I'm a hands-on learner, so having access to real birds would help my knowledge tremendously (and help my future flock! Knowledge is power, after-all.) I know it's a long-shot and I'll prolly be an armchair chicken-ist until I finally get some of my own, haha. But I figured it wouldn't hurt to reach out and try.
I love seeing everyone's pictures and reading all your stories, though. This site is awesome!
I live in the springs as well and if you’re interested in a meet up I’d be happy to show you my flock and what we went through the first few years till now. We have gone through hawks and raccoons, ampuatation and now our first broody hen. We are in the process of rebuilding our chicken run by fencing in a carport. We have a rooster with a crow collar. We get our chicks from Buckley’s down the road and one of our EE’s was actually a girl. All our neighbors love him, the fresh eggs and all our chicks. You’re more than welcome to come spend the day with my flock if you need some city BYC experience.
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