killer chickens

[jeepgurl]

I have a hen that has been sitting on her eggs for weeks. She stays in the nesting box most of the time, only coming out to stretch her legs and walk through the water. I am guessing that some of these eggs will hatch in a few days and a chick or two may survive. The problem is my chickens will kill anything they can. This morning it was a dove. Last week a quail and a finch. Should I isolate this girl and her babies in a separate part of the coop? I do have any area that chicks couldnt get out of. I am thinking that these ladies will kill the babies. What do you think?

 

[mcjessen]

If you think they will kill the babies, then yes, I would isolate them. Interesting that your chickens actually kill other birds. One of our BR got ahold of a bird yesterday that the cats brought up to the door. Hubby said he let the hens out to free range, the BR found the dead bird and wouldn't let it go. Hubby had to tear it out of her mouth. LOL!

 

[jeepgurl]

I was worried that maybe they would get some kind of disease from it so i tried to catch the BR that had it. No luck. They ate everything but the head and feet and wings.

 

[AngryRooster]

isolate the chicks and the mother hen but have your hen interact with the other members of the flock often. I did this once and kept my Jen isolated for a few days before bringing her back. The chickens had a big fight over who was supposed to be on the top of the pecking order. I think my hen have memory loss

 

[jeepgurl]

the iso area is within the regular coop but its framed in and divided by chicken wire. They will all be able to see each other and sleep in the same area.

 

[jeepgurl]

here is a pic. good enough for mommy and baby?

 

[n8ivetxn]

Oh yeah! Good set up