Letting the Hen sit on eggs... day 21 Advise? :::update with pics!!:::

[gocrow77]

 

[bethandjoeync]

I think dominecker is really just southern for dominique....which is similar to a BR. I honestly read this in a book at TSC. lol a neighbor of mine says she has domineckers as well.

what part of NC are you jay 13?

 

[Jay13]

These birds have a crested, not rose comb, so not Dominiques. Am in central NC near Ft. Bragg.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Hooray for a successful hatch! And remember the only silly questions are the ones you neglect to ask, we're all here to support & advise each other.

Once the hen has left the nest with her chicks you can remove the eggshells, so they don't attract flies or rodents. Often the broody hen will eat the membranes during the day her eggs hatch, I think they provide nourishment for her while she stays on the nest.

It's up to you how long to keep Mama & chicks separated. Some flocks are more tolerant of other hens' chicks than others, some Mama hens are more capable of protecting their chicks. You don't want to learn the hard way. It also depends on how much you can accomodate a family in a separate pen.

If possible, I try to keep my chick families separate if only to keep everyone in the flock from gobbling up the chick starter. It's more expensive and EVERYone loves it. I'd rather save it just for the chicks, and their Mama hens. Mama will probably want to leave the chicks after 4-8 weeks anyway -- maybe more, or less -- and you'll need to keep the chicks together for a few months after that.

 

[Jay13]

The area I have set aside for them is about 4x4ft "house thingy" with an attached 4x6 area in the dirt outside it. I don't know how long I can keep 9 birds in there...lol.

I am also considering hatching out some other eggs, maybe turkeys and that particular area is really the only area that is available for it although I suppose I could improvise a new one.

Oh, and I think I may have finally broken the other two birds of being broody, out of 12 hens I had only 6 or 7 eggs a day for a while, silly birds wanted to sit on the nest instead of lay eggs.