How Many Chicks can a broody handle? Answer is 9 with PICS!!!!

[lockedhearts]

One of my Cochin hens is broody, 2 of her eggs have hatched, I also hatched 7 Barred Rocks yesterday.
I stuck 2 chicks under the hen last night and checked this morning she is doing very well with them. I have 5 more BR chicks in the hatcher wondering if she could handle those too? That would be 9 chicks and she is a first time broody. She is doing very good and seems to be a very loving mother.


Took these pics, can't see all the chicks but what you can are the Barred Rocks, the 2 Cochins were under Mama.

One Head one fluffy chick butt!

 

[Ridgerunner]

If it is as standard size cochin, she should be able to handle 9 chicks easily. If she is a bantam, I would consider that too many. The key is, can she cover them all and keep them warm when they are 4 weeks old.

 

[lockedhearts]

She has all nine under her now and is doing awesome with them. I will try to get pics later and post them.

 

[pascopol]

Hey guys you underestimate your LF broody hen capacity.

Broody hen of a size of ORP should handle up to 20 LF chicken eggs with no problem.

My mother hatched a doz of turkey or duck eggs under

heavy breed chicken hen.

 

[chellebyerly]

I had a little black banty one time that was notorious for hatching. she would go broody and stay that way for ever. She was constantly hatching out 16-19 eggs at a time. ALL hers. she would go missing for a month and we would think she was dead. She did this a few times to us.

 

[speckledhen]

Cute pics! She's a pretty hen!

 

[lockedhearts]

Quote:
She is my Partridge Cochin. I have some more girls and a boy growing in the brooder for her. She is very sweet , a good layer and is being a great Mama to these babies. I am nervous about them, I keep checking on them every couple of hours.

 

[speckledhen]

At least she's a LF Cochin. Can you imagine my Shadow, my bantam Cochin (and small even for a banty) now on Day two of her incubation, running around with these chunky standard BBS Orpington chicks she is going to hatch?That will be quite a sight!

 

[Lorettawyandotte]

gorgeous hen and the babies are precious...good shots...

 

[lockedhearts]

Quote:
For the first week Shadow would be ok, but after that she could hide under the babies

I am just glad this went much better than the Bantam Mottled girls, luckily I caught it before more than one chick was killed but it could have been ugly.