HELP! Mama didn't accept chicks

[Lauren Kim]

Are any other hens/roosters in your area? Hens are way happier with a friend.

 

[chickens really]

Strange...Did you slip them under her in the Dark?...She was probably shocked seeing them...You cant trick a Broody....Either they want them or they will kill them...Sorry, looks like your Momma Hen......

 

[carbon county chicks]

Yes, I put them under her last night after dark. Surely she saw them this morning? Everything was going great this morning. Dang mama. We have other hens but they are separated in the coop by chicken mesh.

 

[chickens really]

Some are great setters but terrible once they hatch...Sorry it went so wrong....

 

[Lazy Farmer]

She was attacking them. She did great all night though! They stayed under her and in the morning things looked good. She just freaked for some reason.

Chickens are dormant at night. She was out of it.

 

[bruceha2000]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...d-in-the-brooder-picture-heavy-update.956958/
Make a MHP cave and a brooder area in the coop next to where the broody has her chick. Make sure she can see them through WIRE sides of the brooder, not in an opaque cardboard box or similar. Let them out to mingle while someone is present. In time she MAY decide to take them over, she may not. If not, they will still be happy, safe and NOT in your house.

2 years ago I shoved seven 3 day old chicks at 0 dark 30 under a broody hen (Zorra) who was busy "incubating" 3 plastic eggs. She took them (you CAN'T fool a broody??). This year I had a different girl go broody at the right time for the chicks I ordered but she WOULD NOT stay in the brooder area on her plastic eggs, HAD to go back to the nest boxes. So she ended up in the broody buster. Then Zorra went broody so I stuck her in with the chicks that were a week old by then. Not interested. So into the buster SHE went. After she broke and I let her out she pretty much ignored the chicks until they were 3 weeks old then decided she would mother them. By then they had already found the alpacas' "always open" door in the north end of the barn (that NONE of the older chickens knew about) and were pretty independant. But they didn't mind having a mama. They took her out that north door, none of the older hens have been out it. She decided she was done mothering about a week ago (they are now 11 weeks old) and hasn't been out the alpacas' door since.

Good luck!

 

[carbon county chicks]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...d-in-the-brooder-picture-heavy-update.956958/
Make a MHP cave and a brooder area in the coop next to where the broody has her chick. Make sure she can see them through WIRE sides of the brooder, not in an opaque cardboard box or similar. Let them out to mingle while someone is present. In time she MAY decide to take them over, she may not. If not, they will still be happy, safe and NOT in your house.

Would they need a light? It's 100 degrees here during the day. Can I leave the light off during the day but turn it on a night as it cools off to 70?

 

[bruceha2000]

NO light. That is part of the MHP method, natural day night cycles. They get warm by putting their backs up against the pad on the inside of the cave but ONLY when they need it, just like with a mama hen. If you've not had broody raised chicks before you may have bought into the "95° ambient for a week, drop 5° weekly" BS. Watch the chick your broody hatched. Is it hiding out under mama all the time? NOPE! Even at 65° daytime temps my chicks have spent FAR more time way from the heat source (MHP or Mama) that under it.

These are this year's chicks at 4 weeks, can't see it here but the 2 B/W ones and one of the Barnevelders (the cockerel) were FAR from fully feathered. 65° daytime temp.


And this was 2 years ago, when Zorra was raising 7 chicks. First picture is 3 days old, second one 6 days old. Daytime temp never more than 75°, night time down into the 40°s.


If it is 100° during the day and 70° at night, the pad can be left off during the day and set on low at night.

 

[bruceha2000]

This was their brooder area in the coop, 4 weeks old here. Sorry I don't have a decent picture of their MHP cave. Can't believe I didn't take any pictures between a few days old and 4 weeks! I guess that is what happens when you are on your 3rd set of chicks??

 

[Chickassan]

This doesn't matter much now but you said kids went to check on things. Are these bigger slow moving kids or little speed of light kids?