help! I have baby chicks, do I need to help mama or not

[suebe333]

we have found 2 baby chicks., one up in the nest with one hen and a bunch of other eggs
and one on the ground being protected by another hen.. just wondering, should we touch or help or do anything, we have like 20 free range chickens and a rooster, and never had them hatch any before

 

[MandyH]

IF the mothers are taking good care of them, leave them alone. You can check periodocally and make sure they are well cared for, if not then you can intervene. I think it makes for healthier, stronger chicks if they are raised outside by their mama.

 

[sumi]

The absolute best thing for a chick is to be with it's mom. Don't intervene unless the hen rejects the baby.

 

[suebe333]

OK, that is what I was thinking, 2 diff mama's taking care of one nest ROFL one chick was way down on the coop floor and that mama was protecting it vehimently. 2 chicks were being ignored, we brought them in. but there are like 12 more eggs for the twin mama;'s to take care of LOL .. I am mainly worried about the rooster and the other chickens going after the chicks. what do you think?

 

[MandyH]

IF Mama does her job you won't have to worry about the others. Just keep an eye on them and make sure they are not getting picked on or left out.

 

[sumi]

Quote:
Being ignored? Did you put hem under the hen? Sometimes they are a little preoccupied with what's going on under them 'specially new moms. If you decide to raise some of them please look at the threads reg chick care. It can be tricky. And one hell of a commitment. I've done it a few times and hen mom's the best.
Keep an eye on the rest of the flock and see how they respond to the new chicks. If they attack them it may be better to put them and their moms in a seperate area. Good luck and welcome to the club

 

[suebe333]

thanks, yeah, they probably were just preoccupied.. we have raised chicks before, thats where we got all these LOL

 

[sumi]

I had 3 hens on 1 nest, they killed all but the last chick which no-one wanted. 2 of them pecked it and the 3rd looked at it funny and then completely ignored it. I gave up and raised it myself. It stayed in the house with us for weeks, went everywhere with us, even to the beach! It's now my top rooster. It was worth it, but I never gave his mom(s) another egg to hatch!

 

[suebe333]

heehee, crazy chickens.. so we have her in a huge comfy box now, with the 3 chicks she is protecting, I see or saw at least 3 more hatching out, we put all the eggs from the top nest (the one she had been on) down in the big box with her and she pulled them all under her YAY.. I dont know how many are viable, but I guess we will find out..

so far we have an orange a yellow with black strip and solid black ROFL all the hens like to lay in the same box. so this will be an interesting batch of chicks

 

[sumi]

Good girl