Help! I don’t want to mess this up!

[Masers]

Hello! I also posted this in the “hatching and incubating” forum, but am cross-posting here for extra advice!

I inherited my brother’s chickens when I bought his house, and I have no idea what I’m doing. He had 8 chickens originally, but only 2 remain at this point (about 4 years later). One of the chickens went super broody this spring, and would NOT leave the nesting box. My brother and sister-in-law tried and tried to break her of the bloodiness, but to no avail: I inherited a very broody hen! I ended up buying fertile eggs for her online, since we wanted to have more chickens anyway, and she has been laying on them for almost 3 weeks now. They should be hatching within the next couple days.

However, now that the date is approaching, I’m realizing that the set-up is probably all wrong for chicks. The nesting box she is in is quite high, with a steep ramp to get there. I don’t think chicks could handle that, and some kind of ground nest box or something would probably be a lot better. Also, the material in the bottom of the nesting box is a wire screen type of material, with fairly large holes in the screen, if that makes sense? Like, it’s no problem at all for the hens, but I feel like tiny chick feet will go right through the gaps and could definitely be really bad for them...I’m picturing broken legs and stuck chicks...argh!

SO—now that hatching day is almost approaching, I’m realizing that I need to figure things out asap! Please don’t rip me to shreds—I know I should have done my research way in advance. We’ve been moving, I have young children, very busy job, husband traveling, etc.—I have not prioritized baby chick research! (I have “chicken-sat” for my brother many times over the years, and I feel competent in caring for adult chickens...but clearly this needed a little extra research!)

PLEASE HELP a clueless new chicken mama out! What do I need to do to prepare for this? Can I move the brooding hen at this point, or will she abandon the eggs? (Like if I get some kind of mini chicken coop or ground box or what do I even need?!?!)

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

 

[21hens-incharge]

How big is the coop?
Can you for a dog crate in there?

 

[Masers]

It’s good size. It was a converted shed. Yes, I could fit a dog crate in there. (Not sure I have one—we don’t use crates for ours—but I bet I could scrounge one up. My brother also has dogs, and my mom had one until he passed away last year...she might still have the crate.)

What would I do—stick it on the ground in there? If I move the eggs in there and then put the chicken back in there, will she go back to laying on them?

What else do I put in the crate?—obviously line it with the pine shaving that I use in the rest of the coop, plus her nesting material....anything else?

Thanks SO much for your help.

 

[DiYMama540]

Are the nest boxes just attached to the wall? Is moving them down to ground level an option?

With only one other hen, I don't think you would need to completely separate mama and the new babies with a separate coop as you would with a whole flock. As for abandoning her nest, it sounds like it's going to take a lot more than relocation to break this determined girl!

I personally would just try some sort of comfortable nest box on the ground since the time is getting so close. Anything you have on hand should do the trick...seen them enjoy cardboard boxes just as well as wooden ones!

Good luck! Hope this helps a little bit! And welcome to BYC!!

 

[Ebony Rose]

Mkay then, some emergency modifications that won't disturb your hen **too** much. How about cutting some cardboard big enough to put under the bedding where she's brooding and putting about a four inch 'lip' on the bottom front of the nest to keep them chicks in for the first week while allowing the momma to come and go as she pleases. This lip could probably be made of cardboard too. The momma will bring them out of there when she feels it's safe to do so, and you'd be surprised how well chicks 'bounce'. Something soft to land on would be helpful. If you really feel that you need to move them, I'd recommend waiting for them to be about a week old. They don't really move around much their first week, and the move would be less disruptive after they've hatched.

 

[Masers]

Are the nest boxes just attached to the wall? Is moving them down to ground level an option?

With only one other hen, I don't think you would need to completely separate mama and the new babies with a separate coop as you would with a whole flock. As for abandoning her nest, it sounds like it's going to take a lot more than relocation to break this determined girl!

I personally would just try some sort of comfortable nest box on the ground since the time is getting so close. Anything you have on hand should do the trick...seen them enjoy cardboard boxes just as well as wooden ones!

Good luck! Hope this helps a little bit! And welcome to BYC!!

Thank you thank you! The nest boxes are attached to the wall; they are are built on, not removable.

Okay, I was kind of thinking the same thing. The other hen is pretty chill, too.

Do you think I should try a dog crate like someone else suggested? Or just a cardboard/wooden box? I am so nervous that if I move her eggs to a new box, she will return to her nesting box—not because she wants to abandon her eggs (she has been VERY DUTIFUL for MONTHS), but because she doesn’t realize the eggs are moved?? We had removed her non-fertile eggs in the past, and she marched right back to her spot in the nesting box, laid more eggs, and then nested on those!

Also—Do I need to have special chick food? A smaller food and water bowl? Dumb question, I’m sure, but...Idk!

 

[Masers]

Mkay then, some emergency modifications that won't disturb your hen **too** much. How about cutting some cardboard big enough to put under the bedding where she's brooding and putting about a four inch 'lip' on the bottom front of the nest to keep them chicks in for the first week while allowing the momma to come and go as she pleases. This lip could probably be made of cardboard too. The momma will bring them out of there when she feels it's safe to do so, and you'd be surprised how well chicks 'bounce'. Something soft to land on would be helpful. If you really feel that you need to move them, I'd recommend waiting for them to be about a week old. They don't really move around much their first week, and the move would be less disruptive after they've hatched.

This could be possible. I could actually fit a (shallow?) cardboard box right in the nesting box...if she allows me to move her! Ha. So...I could move her...put the eggs in the cardboard box in the same spot she has been nesting...and you think she’ll go right back to them?

Thanks so much for the help.

 

[Ebony Rose]

If you feed an all flock food, then smashing that up will be just fine for the chicks. If you feed layer food, then you'll need to give them something different. Layer food has too much calcium in it for the chicks, and the overabundance of calcium can cause serious medical problems down the road. A good "all flock" feed with oyster shell, egg shell or calcium supplement available on the side (in a separate dish), will cover all of your birds needs. Those that need the calcium boost will use it, and those that do not typically avoid it.

 

[Ebony Rose]

This could be possible. I could actually fit a (shallow?) cardboard box right in the nesting box...if she allows me to move her! Ha. So...I could move her...put the eggs in the cardboard box in the same spot she has been nesting...and you think she’ll go right back to them?

Thanks so much for the help.

I believe she will

 

[21hens-incharge]

You're getting some great ideas.

I like the cardboard in her nest idea myself...even though I suggested a dog crate.
I think that would be least likely to make her abandon the eggs.