Letting the chicken raise the chicks? So many questions...

[Jazzyfresh]

Hi, I recently realized my Australorp hen, Stew, is broody.
I was considering giving her some eggs to hatch, but have never done this before and have no idea how it works.

If I give her eggs, will she stay broody until they hatch?
What happens when they hatch in the nesting box? How do they get down without hurting themselves?
Will stew take care of them? She is almost a year old, and has never been a mother.
How much will I have to do for them, or will Stew take care of it all?
Will the other chickens hurt the chicks? They aren't all the same breed.
Will I need to give the chicks their own water\feed? I have a bucket hanging with tabs that let the chicks drink when they peck at them, and I put fermented feed in troughs.
We have a lot of iron in our water, would that be bad for the chicks?
Where would I even get fermented eggs? I don't have a rooster anymore (his crow sounded like a cross between A kazoo and a scream. He had to go.)

Sorry for the question overload. I had wanted to get more chicks this year, but wasn't sure I wanted to go through the whole "raise baby chicks in the basement until they start flying out of the brooder and wrecking havoc" thing. Plus, we only have one coop, and the chicks can't live in our basement until their old enough to move into the coop with the year-old chickens.

 

[SilverBirds]

Hens should stay broody until they're chicks hatch. She'll get off the nest for an hour at them most to eat, drink, poop, and bathe.

How long ago did you get rid of your rooster? Most hatcheries sell fertile eggs. Shipped eggs are a gamble and don't have the best of hatch rates. You can also look for breeders on FB, or Craigslist.

Count down the days until hatch day. It takes 21 days for chicks to hatch. Day 1 is 24hours after the eggs have been set. Example: If you set eggs today, day one would be May 27th and hatch date would be on June 16th.

Mark the eggs you want her to hatch. This can be done by using a pencil. Draw an X one side and an O on the other. Check daily to make sure other hens aren't laying eggs in her box. Discard any eggs that are not marked. Even if they are not fertilized, they could explode and cause an icky mess and contaminate the good eggs, or it could get top crowded underneath her.

Your other option is to let her sit for a week or so and buy day old chicks. These can then be slipped underneath her (preferably at night). She should be watched to make sure she accepts chicks. This too is a gamble. Sometimes she will take the chicks no problem and other times she will attack them.

Most people say yes, you can have mamma and babies in with the rest of the flock. She should protect them from the others. There IS a chance your other hens may attack the chicks. In this case, move mamma and babies into their own pen.

Not sure how your coop is set up. Do you have any lower nesting boxes? If you do, you can move mamma and the chicks into it after they have hatched. If you do not have lower boxes, you can make a makeshift nest. A box, kitty litter bucket, etc. makes for a good nest.

When the chicks hatch they need to eat chick food (crumbles). Mamma can eat it too. I always brood mom and babies separate so not experienced in keeping big chickens out of chick food and making sure the big girls have a complete diet. Not sure how the iron will affect them. Make sure the chicks have easy access to the food and the water.

 

[Jazzyfresh]

Our rooster has been gone since autumn last year. I'm not exactly sure how long the hen has been broody, but probably not much over a week.

So, if I do give Stew eggs to hatch\chicks, I could make a nest on the ground out of a egg crate and set chick feed and a chick waterer nearby and she would guard the chicks from the other chickens?

 

[Banana01]

My experience has led me to allow my broody hens only one or two eggs. I started out just letting them go wild, but maybe just give her one to three eggs, and hopefully you will get at least one baby, but no more than three.

For the first three days, the mother will stay in the nest with the babies if you give them their own private baby food and water.

Depending on the coop you have and the ranging situation your chickens have, after three days I have autonomous hens, they eat and sleep with little maintenance. But I do movw them from their nests into a lower to the ground sleeping place. I strongly suggest starting her out with maximum of three eggs, and this is for your own sanity, not the hens.

 

[SilverBirds]

Our rooster has been gone since autumn last year. I'm not exactly sure how long the hen has been broody, but probably not much over a week.

So, if I do give Stew eggs to hatch\chicks, I could make a nest on the ground out of a egg crate and set chick feed and a chick waterer nearby and she would guard the chicks from the other chickens?

Theoretically, yes. They are pretty wobbly when they first hatch and will want to sit under mama for the first few days so they're less likely to hop out. Move them once the chicks have hatched and are about a day or two old.

 

[Jazzyfresh]

Thanks for all the feedback guys! This really helped a lot.

 

[3KillerBs]

Here's an excellent article for you:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...rst-turkey-strut-to-weaning-the-chicks.76878/

 

[Jazzyfresh]

Will they take chicks that aren't the same breed as they are?

I might be able to set up a mini coop with a old dog house, but would transferring her to a different place break her of being broody?

 

[SilverBirds]

Will they take chicks that aren't the same breed as they are?

I might be able to set up a mini coop with a old dog house, but would transferring her to a different place break her of being broody?

Yes. Chickens don't really know that there are different breeds. They just see chickens as chickens.

 

[Jazzyfresh]

Thank you everyone for being so helpful! I've never hatched chicks before, so this is a HUGE help.