First time letting broody hen hatch eggs - advice please

[rebrascora]

@lizswope

Pleased I was able to help. If you get stuck or don't understand anything, just shout up.
enjoy seeing chick pics, so keeping my fingers crossed for you. What breed(s) are you setting?

 

[lizswope]

Thanks. I certainly will! They are all mixed breed. Rooster is a Buff Orpington. Several hens with him, so who knows?

 

[rebrascora]

Farmyard mutts are the best! Mixed genes make for a pretty flock that are usually quite hale and hearty and lots of surprises when it comes to egg laying time, especially if you have an EE or two in the parent stock. Only down side is that it's hard to figure out how to reproduce any that you especially like.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Only down side is that it's hard to figure out how to reproduce any that you especially like.

You are Not going to be able to reproduce the ones you like---unless you have full breeds you can separate into private pens and give them time to "clean" out before you collect eggs to hatch.

BUT barn yard mixed are pretty-----but not at my pens---LOL, because I am a breeder.

 

[filomeli]

Yes just adding a little ramp or bricks or whatever. The chicks are pretty good at jumping up and are so self sufficient at a day old. Good luck. I also just kept the chicks an hen separate from the others for just about 3 days and then she took care of them and was with the others and just slept in the nest box but to my surprise by day 5 0r 6 she had them up higher in the regular next boxes and the chicks made it up there up a chicken ladder.

 

[jafo]

We had chickens for a long time, Buff Orpingtons, roosters with them. We left a broody hen in the coop, with the others, and her egg hatched. The first morning when I went to check as usual, the chick poked her head out from under moms feathers and peeped, and all the others like ran over to get a peek. very cool. 23 eggs is too many, back it off to 8-12, let her be, she'll do fine. We have had chicks too born, 3 days later I check the coop, and the chick is on the top rung with it's mom, and that's 2 feet high. Our Rooster, a huge "splash" was so gentle and caring for all the chicks too, good luck!

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

Last week we had some nice sunny warm weather so I let my broody and her three chicks out to enjoy some sunshine. It isn't hard to determine which chick she hatched herself (probably not her own egg but from her flock) and which came rom Tractor Supply, but she treats them all equally, no picking favorites.

 

[rebrascora]

@Hummingbird Hollow

Is the white chick a meat bird? There is such a huge difference in size!

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

@Hummingbird Hollow

Is the white chick a meat bird? There is such a huge difference in size!

Yes, when only one egg hatched I ran to Tractor Supply and got 2 CX meat chicks because they were the closest in age to the one she hatched. They are enormous compared to the other chick. It makes me sort of happy to see a little CX getting the chance to be a "real" chicken, following mom around the yard, scratching in the dirt, snuggling under mom at night. The other CX didn't join the adventure, prefering to stay inside near the food dish in typical CX

fashion.

 

[rebrascora]

Will you butcher the CX chicks for meat or see if having a broody upbringing will improve their lifespan? It sounds like one of them is obviously already showing too much CX interest in food, but lovely to see at least one of them out with the mother hen learning to be a real chicken rather than in a rush to be a chicken dinner. It's not something that you hear about very often.... a broody rearing CX, especially with other more mobile chicksin the same brood. Good luck with them.