Hatching with 2 broodies

[lizgarf]

Since my only broody has gone on strike, I am incubating some eggs. How old do the chicks have to be before I move them in with the rest of the flock? I had happy thoughts that Millie the only mother hen would be so happy to see them. No?

Any ideas about placing her and the soon to be hatched eggs into a crate. Would she take them as hers then?

I'm not an expert by any stretch, but my understanding is that if she's not broody enough to set on the eggs, she won't be broody enough to raise them, and placing them with her would be risky all around. It sounds like there are degrees of broodiness, and your hen may be on the low end of the scale.

 

[tommysgirl]

Since my only broody has gone on strike, I am incubating some eggs. How old do the chicks have to be before I move them in with the rest of the flock? I had happy thoughts that Millie the only mother hen would be so happy to see them. No?

Any ideas about placing her and the soon to be hatched eggs into a crate. Would she take them as hers then?

Not 100% sure what you mean. If you don't have a broody you risk killing the chicks if you just give them to a random hen, even one who has raised a clutch before.

If you don't have a broody you will have to brood them yourself.

When to integrate varies depending on who you talk to and their individual circumstances. Chicks raised by a hen will...in my limited experience of having one broody raise a clutch....generally be protected by mom until around 4-6 weeks at which point they are on their own but if you have a relatively mellow group of older birds they should be fine at that point...there will be squabbles and the babies in my case were terribly confused about how they went from cherished protected golden boys to low man on the roost. But no one was torturing them.

If you brood them yourself you should wait until the birds are roughly of equal size then allow them to see but not get to one another for a time..a few days.. then range them together then coop them together. If you can't range them together you need to give them a longer look but don't touch period. Make sure that the space they are sharing has at least two waters and two feeders in two widely spaced spots because the new ones will be chased away from food and water by the olders also there should be plenty of space for them to get away if they are being picked on.


At the actual moment of integration either throw out a bunch of treats/scratch so that the olders are occupied or stick them in at night so that. I used the first option and it went OK for me and my flock
Ther are lots of threads here on BYC devoted to integration. If you do a search if this isn't enough info for you. Good Luck!!!

 

[16 paws]

Good luck tommysgirl, keep us updated. I get so excited when I hear day 21!

Marie

 

[Teila]

G'Day Team Broody!

Tee hee .. well said Coops & Liz; I read the post and thought, "hhmm, did I misread our threads and imagine that beautiful picture" lol

Go tommysgirl!!! Very excited to maybe hear some good news soon??

Yeah, Florida, I am definitely no expert but totally agree with Liz and tommysgirl's comments. I can't offer any more than they have.

Update: Britney has gone a little down hill again, tail is back to drooping and she looks sad! I am wondering if she could have a bad case of worms!! Trying some garlic in their water and on their food for a couple of days.

Cilla & Co got to have a little play in the garden yesterday .. I got to see one of them trying to have his/her first grown-up dust bath .. so adorable! They found a worm!!
Cilla seems happier with the 'ranch' in it's new spot and it opens onto where these pictures were taken; perfect for teaching scratching! Also, well protected from swooping Mr Crow!
Of course, it goes without saying, that Cilla is not the only Mum supervising their outings .. I'm lurking doing my chicken-stalker impersonations!

 

[lizgarf]

Such adorable little fuzzballs, Teila! I'm jealous of your color variety. I was supposed to be bringing some more color back into my coop, since losing my red hen, but, at least for now, my little ones appear to be additions to the general gray scale theme. Have you named them at all? I think I have settled on some names: the one I'm convinced is a girl, I'm naming Daisy, after a much beloved Bernese Mountain dog I know; the one I am less certain about (mainly due to the wing-feather test and a slightly more prominent comb) I'm calling Ida, which will become Idaho if it's a boy. So, #1 and #2 have become Ida and Daisy - for now at least!
Day 5 of no eggs at all. Grace has lost enough feathers on her crest and neck that she no longer bears any resemblance to her namesake (Grace Jones). Bettina looks perfectly normal, so I guess she's just being ornery.

 

[lizgarf]

Just got a couple new fun shots to share. The little family is always at their cuddly cutest when getting ready to turn in for the night. See if you can find Ida in both shots.

 

[Teila]

Such adorable little fuzzballs, Teila! I'm jealous of your color variety. I was supposed to be bringing some more color back into my coop, since losing my red hen, but, at least for now, my little ones appear to be additions to the general gray scale theme. Have you named them at all? I think I have settled on some names: the one I'm convinced is a girl, I'm naming Daisy, after a much beloved Bernese Mountain dog I know; the one I am less certain about (mainly due to the wing-feather test and a slightly more prominent comb) I'm calling Ida, which will become Idaho if it's a boy. So, #1 and #2 have become Ida and Daisy - for now at least!
Day 5 of no eggs at all. Grace has lost enough feathers on her crest and neck that she no longer bears any resemblance to her namesake (Grace Jones). Bettina looks perfectly normal, so I guess she's just being ornery.

Tee hee thank you Liz; they are actually fuzzing up. I got such a shock when I got home from work, they had grown heaps!! Research has led me to believe that it is too early to know what colour they are going to be; apparently Silkies can start off one colour as a chick and then go the total opposite; apparently your only guarantee is that blacks stay black.

I have my eye on the little brown one, assuming it is a girl .. I have no idea at this stage and tommysgirl has advised that sexing Silkies is difficult even for the experts so I am going to have to wait until they crow or lay an egg! lol If they all boys, back to the drawing board!

No names yet! I will have to stick with my female singer theme .. if I keep a white one maybe Annie, after Annie (Lennox - white fuzzy hair! lol)..if the brown one stays brown and is a girl, definitely a keeper and I'm thinking Tina (Turner - brown fuzzy hair)! lol

I like the Ida to Idaho .. whatya gunna do if Daisy is a boy?? lol

With Britney still being poorly and not looking good (I am at a loss) and Cilla being a Mum, I got 1 egg today off Dusty .. don't forget we are talking bantam eggs; so probably really only 1/2 an egg!

 

[Teila]

Just got a couple new fun shots to share. The little family is always at their cuddly cutest when getting ready to turn in for the night. See if you can find Ida in both shots.

Aaaw Liz .. just beautiful! What a perfect little family. I wonder just how many people actually manage to do what you and your girls have done?
It took me a while to find her in the top picture but I did (I won't give it away in case other Team Broody's are looking). Got her in the bottom one also (sooo cute!).

At bed time I tell Cilla that she is my "little 6 headed chicken"

 

[lizgarf]

Aaaw Liz .. just beautiful! What a perfect little family. I wonder just how many people actually manage to do what you and your girls have done?
It took me a while to find her in the top picture but I did (I won't give it away in case other Team Broody's are looking). Got her in the bottom one also (sooo cute!).

At bed time I tell Cilla that she is my "little 6 headed chicken"

Awwwww, now you have to post a photo of this 6-headed chicken! So cute!!
Even when I first brought them home as little pullets, Frida and Rousseau seemed like a couple. They were just always together, so it makes sense to me that they're doing this together too. I think when you have a small enough flock and the interest in getting to know the hens well, you get a sense of what works and what doesn't work. Of course, there are always surprises, and Grace's personality has definitely changed during this molt. But, one challenge with a forum like this is learning how to receive advice from people with very different flock set-ups and experiences. There's so much to learn, but no one way to learn it.

Tommy's Girl -- how's it going on the morning of Day 22??

 

[tommysgirl]

Tommy's Girl -- how's it going on the morning of Day 22??

Since I didn't give her the eggs until the afternoon of the 3rd I am going to consider it day 21 until this afternoon. I heard definite peeping this morning

But then, Beakface shushed it and it stopped. No kidding there were peeps then she went buck buck buck in that low broody way and then silence. I waited around for several minutes but the peeper remained silent. Right before I went to work I listened and heard it again. Here she is incubating away.

for 7 healthy chicks by the time I get home. It is possible I may have to go home for lunch today though DH is there and can keep an eye on things but I feel the pull of the coop.