Day old chick abandoned.

[GladysGoat]

I have a flock (30 - 40) that started with 3 jungle fowl 7 years ago. I added a few Americaunas, and then a couple of roosters a friend received in a batch of straight run chicks. Nice roosters, sorry I do not know the breed. My chickens are loose on 5 acres and can wander in a neighbor orchard and pastures. It is always breeding season here, so chicks are hatching all the time, here in the countryside and all over town. Not ideal, but that is what we have. We have had health issues with chickens kept in the coop.

Last Wednesday I found two very new chicks on the concrete floor in the barn. No sign of a hen or nest. I had a hen with a couple about 3 days old, so tried to give them to her. I am not sure how that worked out since there is really no way to watch them. The next day I went to pasture 100 yards from the barn and there was another chick all alone. I tried to put it with a hen who had new ones (no way was this hers, too far away).

It is definitely not warm enough here that eggs could hatch without a hen. Periodically I do find eggs out in the pasture just lying on the ground which I donʻt understand.

Does anyone have an idea why a hen would just walk away from new hatchlings? They looked healthy.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Unfortunately not every broody hen will be a good mother hen.

It is also possible that they were separated by a flock squabble or a predator took her.

 

[GladysGoat]

Unfortunately not every broody hen will be a good mother hen.

It is also possible that they were separated by a flock squabble or a predator took her.

Both good possibilities. Our only predators are mongoose and they would take chicks and eggs before the hen. A flock squabble is something to consider, there is always some kind of conflict happening out there!