Dead Chicks

[ravingbantha]

We have 2 broody hens, both sitting on a couch of eggs. Yesterday we found a dead chick, there seemed to be no issue getting out, it's feathers were dry, and there were no injuries. This morning we found 3 more, same condition.

It's been fairly warm lately, mid 80s with a fair amount of humidity. I'm wondering if it's just too hot for the chicks once they hatch. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[Kiki]

Chicks hatch in an incubator at close to a hundred degrees, I highly doubt the outside weather it TOO hot.
It is more likely that the mom pecked them which caused an injury that lead to death. Do you still have more eggs to hatch?
It might be a good idea to take them away as soon as they do hatch.

 

[ravingbantha]

The problem has been, they seem to hatch at night when we are asleep. If the mom did peck them to death, wouldn't there be Injuries on the chick? Forgot to mention one of the chicks was found under one of the hens.

 

[Kiki]

Well usually the chicks stay under the mom for the first few days...a quick peck to the head may not leave a noticeable mark on the outside but can do some damage to the inside of the chick.
I don't know for sure if this is what happened...but it would be my first guess.
I am guessing this is her first time hatching eggs?
Some times they (hen)just don't know what to do.

 

[ravingbantha]

Yes, it's their first hatching, I let the hens incubate them because everything I read said hatching eggs via the hens was best. I'm going to bring the eggs inside and put them in my incubator. Once they hatch, would it be safe to put them back out with the mother hens, or should I continue to keep them separate?

Right now, I have a small fenced off area in my coop for new or injured chickens. The hens on eggs are in there, so none of the other chickens can get to them.

 

[Kiki]

You have a tough decision to make that can only really be made but trying it out.
You could try to put the chicks back with the mom but you will need to keep a close eye on her to make sure she doesn't do the exact same thing.
I personally wouldn't try it again since she has already killed some.

Maybe the other broody will be a better mom ?? and you could sneak her the chicks?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

Sorry you are having issues.

Where are you finding these dead chicks? All hatched chicks should be UNDER a hen. If they hatch in the middle of the night, they should not be out from under the broody yet. They are usually still getting their land legs. IF they are getting out from under the broody, they may not know how to find their way back and chilling to death. For this reason I usually check every half hour or so, and have found many a chick lost their way after getting out from under mama to eat or something. But those aren't fresh hatches. Fresh hatched chicks are not that mobile for the first 24-48 hours, in MY experience.

One possibility in that the eggs are actually too dirty and dying from bacterial infection after hatching. My broody hatched eggs sometimes end up covered in poo. And that is one reason for chicks to die very close after hatching. Someone recently had all their chicks die shortly after hatching, and it was in an incubator. So I would definitely consider it a possibility.

No, I don't think being pecked will necessarily leave visible injuries. It's also possible it is being caused by other flock members. If they say play a game of keep away like they do with other curios finds, all the commotion could be very stressful

IF it were me, and I had an incubator.. I would take all the eggs and finish hatching them and try returning to the broody after they are hatched all together, leaving duds under the broody. Though my broody's will continue to sit on air.

Also, hens can accidentally stand on the chicks while adjusting themselves or the nest. I have seen it happen with the chick squealing up a storm to the oblivion of the hen. Chick would have surely been dead were I not there to intervene.

Agreed temp to low is more likely than temps too high from what you describe.

If you leave them under the hen, I would be out at dawn checking before any flock dynamics started. And with fresh chicks I usually supervise during morning dispersal to make sure nobody is bullying.

Hope the rest of your hatch goes well.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

If you put them back under the hen, I would do so after dark, with a flash light. Tuck them in quickly, shielding from her wild pecking against YOU, the predator to her nest. Stand around in the dark listening for any mad babies that may have been untucked. After a few moments of silence, shine the light and make sure no babies are off to her side.

A quick peck to the head doesn't *usually* cause harm. But vaulted skull breeds are more prone to it.

For me, I WOULD try to tuck them under after hatching, IF I had the time to be out there first thing and check several times throughout the day (which I do). Sometimes I wait a couple days to make sure they are eating and drinking. Even though chicks hatch, sometimes they fail before long.. even in the incubator.

I see you have them separated from general flock dynamics which makes some of my earlier suggestions invalid.

 

[ravingbantha]

There are 2 brooding hens and they have decided they absolutely must be next to each other, so it's impossible to say which hen is the problem, if either one is. The eggs are not that dirty, in fact they are relatively clean.

No other chicken has access to the area the hens are brooding in, as I said, it's a completely fenced off area with floor to ceiling wire (door for us to get in, but it stays latched). Out of the 4 found dead, 3 were next to the hens and 2 was under. But since the hens are right next to each other, we can't be certain who did what.

We've tried keeping them apart, but they move right back to each other and occasionally steal each other's eggs.