Does this hen sound broody to you? *Day 21 - There's a baby!!! Pics*

[wordgirl]

Hey, guys,

Well, I spent much of the morning setting up a pen for the 5-1/2 week chicks that we purchased several weeks ago, with a partition for Mrs. Parr and her babies when I decided to bring them outside. I set up the upper half of our unused doghouse (upper half = not the floor, to keep it clean) for shade and shelter, and went to the coop to fill up the waterer for the pen and glanced into Mrs. Parr’s kennel. There were a couple of little white pieces beside her – egg shell! I opened the door and lifted her wing (much to her annoyance) and found a dead, pretty-full-grown chick embryo lying beneath her.

The chick had a little torn flesh on the inside of her thigh (or it might have been the lower abdomen, but I think it was also on the thigh), and some membrane-like thing attached to it that may have been her skin or something, but I’m not sure. There was a little bit of blood on the chick. It had died before drying out. I don’t know if the chick was just premature (it’s only day 19 today, and I think it must hatched overnight or this morning), or didn’t full absorb the yolk, or if Mrs. Parr killed it. She had some brown stuff (maybe blood) on her beak, so maybe she was just pecking at it in confusion or maybe she did it. When I held the chick near her she tried to peck it.

I’m sad, but I’m okay. I really, really hope, though, that Mrs. Parr wasn’t the reason it died. I’m praying that the other chicks hatch safely. I carefully looked over the other egg that’s due on the 21st, and I saw no pip, and when I tapped it gently, I heard no peep, so I don’t think it’s ready yet.

Hoping the rest of the chicks make it.

 

[wordgirl]

Well, I came home this afternoon to find a pipped egg beneath Mrs. Parr.

I can hear cheeping inside!!! I keep going out to check, but nothing much has changed! Gaah! I'm so impatient! I can't wait to see the baby!

 

[Cattitude]

*crosses fingers for a healthy baby and a happy momma*

 

[wordgirl]

One beautiful baby chick and one pleased-as-punch mama!!! I am so thankful! The baby is adorable, and loves its mama.

Mrs. Parr seems to be taking well to the little one, and I already saw her trying to call her for some tidbit that had been lost in the bedding. She seems to be pretty attentive.

I think this may be the daughter of a Gold Link, so it's a Gold Link/Buff Orpington cross (dad is a BO). It's not totally light buff - it's got some redder highlights, so probably not a BO. All the other hens in the flock are dark (black, black and brown (BSL), or barred), so I'm thinking it either has to be a 'pure' BO or a GL/BO. It also came out of an egg that was darker than Mrs. Parr's, so...? It's really cute, nonetheless.

Here's a couple of pics of the little sweetie: