Letting mom raise her chicks...

[kdhouse]

I just came home and found this!!

I can't raise them right now. I need to let her do it. She's currently in a coop that she can have all to herself. I pulled the big waterer and put out the chick size feeder and waterer. Am I horrible for letting nature just take it's course? They're a few feet up in a nesting box. Ugh. I'm going to feel horrible if something happens to them.

So cute! Don’t feel horrible. We just had that happen with one tiny chick about 10 weeks ago. They were in the nest box about 18 inches off the floor. They figured it out! By day four baby was hopping down and drinking with mama at the big waterer and scratching through the floor for feed that messy hens leave when they eat. The weird part was after 10 days or two weeks somehow mama got baby to the top run of the roost to sleep! We never did figure this out. It was so cute with baby tucked under her wing there at night. Just keep an eye on things and make sure nobody bullies the babies. Our daddy rooster actually protected baby and mama out in the run and a couple of the other hens helped babysit also. It has been really fun to see how the whole flock raises that baby! Have faith and let nature do its thing.

 

[Anon112]

10 hens might be enough for 2 closely related roos for some breeds? What breed are they?

Monroe (dad) is an Easter Egger. Popcorn (the juvenile) is either an Easter Egger x Eater Egger or Easter Egger x Welsummer.

 

[Crazy Chicken Keeper]

I always let my hens raise chicks, every single time I get a broody I let them raise the chicks