Hen is raising chicks. Do I need to do ?

[Kittymomma]

Quote:
Did you check their backsides? Sometimes you just lose them

but pasty butt is where the fecal matter cakes up until they can no longer eliminate. It's fairly common and if not cleaned up chicks do die from it.

 

[everyonesmomtwo]

thanks for the reply's. Yes the spot where she takes the chicks is predatory proof.
She seems to be doing really good with them and you are right it is so fun to watch them with her. If I pick one up they really fuss and she has a fit. I have been putting chick starter down and all the hens and chicks eat it as well as the scratch. If I put other food out the mom will tear it apart and feed it to them. It is so great to watch. As to water it has been raining here non-stop so there is plenty of water for them in every container around. Soon as it stops i'll put something small out. They do have a small bowl of water in the spot where mom takes them to roost for the night.
I love the fact that mom is raising the babies for me. I've never seen chicks accepted into the flock so easily as this time. When ever I tried to introduce young hens to the flock it took forever.
I hope I have someother eggs hatch out as it seems the hens take time on the nests.
Ruth

 

[snowhorse]

Does anyone know of thread that has gone over this? I was looking for the same thing today, I have a broody girl I want her to hatch some babies, because she wants so badly to be a momma.

 

[everyonesmomtwo]

I searched the site but was unable to find anything about it.

 

[Brickman House]

If you head on over to the Incubating and Hatching Eggs forum, there are several threads already going about broody hens if you scan a few pages. If your questions aren't answered there, you should post a thread-- they're an extremely knowledgable group!

 

[ilovechickens]

I have a Cuckoo Maran that hatched 3 healthy chicks on Saturday, and last night the last egg hatched, but the chick was dead in the pen, thinking that it was a weak chick, it just did not make it. I have my hen and her babies in a dog kennel, when I went out there today, the little buggers got out of the kennel and the mama was in the kennel having a fit I was grabbing the three chicks and the mama was charging at me, and pecking at me, I would put them in and they would come right back out, it took me an hour to enclose the kennel to make sure the chicks stayed there. I tell ya, there is nothing more scarry than being locked in the coop with a maniac mama, my daughter screamed and locked me in. I never saw anything like it, she is a good mama. I have her in the kennel because she shares the pen with one other hen and she goes outside. i put chick starter in there, and mama food in there, and water with rocks in the dish. So that is that, if I were a hen, I would definently stay away from that mama and her precious wee ones.

 

[debbie.h]

Mama hen knows best

Just provide a shallow drinking pan so the chicks wont drown.

 

[Ryu]

Just be sure to keep an eye on them. We had a broody momma (she hatched something like 24 chicks), and she did great with her herd of babies for a couple weeks. Then one day she decided she was done. She would lead them out and them fly up on a high roost and leave them down below chirping for her. The other hens would come over and pick on them.

We rounded them up and put them into a brooder pen until they were older, poor babies.

 

[hankus]

Games do real well. Neighbor has a miner blue hen with spurs, and she will use em. Hope when she hatches em out she don't see me as a threat.

 

[everyonesmomtwo]

So far she continues to do great and all the other hens accept the chicks. Thanks goodness no pecking.