loaded up my 1st broody pullet, question or 2 *update with PIC*

[CoffeeCow]

hi everyone

I wasn't planning on hatching any eggs till spring, but... i have a broody BO, and can't resist

since this is her first time, I am only going to put 6-10 eggs under her ( depends on how many I get today)
if i did the math right, loading her up tonight should put hatch day around christmas.
can't wait to see what an ee/delaware mutt looks like hehe

anyway, onto my question...

do I need to separate her from the rooster when they hatch? He isn't very aggressive, but I have no idea if he will be mean to the chicks...

and the other pullets, will they be okay with the chicks as well?

I have some scrap lumber and wire, I can make a partition if needed.

thanks for any advice

*edit*
loaded her up with 7 eggs, posted pics on down the page

 

[CoffeeCow]

looks like I got the hatch date wrong by a week...
CHRISTMAS CHICKS !

anyway, I noticed a thread or 2 where the broody ate her chicks, is this normal? rare?

 

[pinkyglory123]

SEPERATE THEM! I did not and had problems with other hens in the nest. Nothing aggressive but lost several chicks in the process of hatching or just hatched I believe by being stepped on. Felt verybad about it-you don't want to feel that way believe me. If this can save
even one of your chicks it will make me feel better-at least I learned something from my mistake and may help someone else from making the same mistake.

 

[CoffeeCow]

Okay, I will try to make her a partition in the coop, I have plenty of room... but that leads to more questions hehe

how do I move her? if i try to get close, she screams at me like a velocaraptor...
and If I do get her to go in the new partition, will she go broody in the new nest?

or should I wait till hatching day and move her and the babies?

sorry for the questions, but 95% of this forum is dealing with incubators, and not many are helpful for a broody =/

 

[Kittymomma]

I move mine at night and then cover the new nest (usuallly a large dog crate) to keep it pretty dark for 24 hours. Usually at the end of that time she's back in her trance and stays broody, but sometimes moving them will break them.

In your situation I'd move her and put golf balls or ?? under her for the first couple of days until you're pretty sure she's going to stay broody after the move and then give her the eggs you want her to hatch.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I also do not know if your rooster will be mean to the chicks or not. My rooster has gone out of his way to protect the chicks. They are all living animals so anything can happen, but I consider the other hens more of a threat than my rooster.

I am not saying every rooster is this way. They are definitely not. I had a broody that went out of a gate and turned the corner. Some of her chicks stayed with her but several did not make it out of the gate. She wound up on one side of the fence and most of her chicks were on the other side. They were trying to get to each other through the fence but could not figure out the concept of gate. My rooster saw the chicks left alone and went to them and laid down to watch them until the broody hen figured it out.

I have had two week old chicks leave Mama and go to eat out of the big feeder right next to other hens. Sometimes the other hens ignored them, but occasionally one would peck the chick. This peck was not an attempt to kill the chick. It was a reminder that it is bad manners for a young chick to forget the pecking order and try to eat with its social betters. The chick would immediately run back to Mama, crying the whole way.

When the chicks were very young, I saw Mama discipline a couple of the older hens for getting too close to her babies, but pretty soon the other learned to leave the chicks alone.

I'll say it again. Not all flocks are this way. There are flocks where the hens and maybe even a rooster are a danger to the chicks. I think it helps whan Mama has enough room to work with. Hens have been raising chicks with the flock for thousands of years, but sometimes bad things happen.

There are risks whichever way you decide to go. If you raise them separately, someday you will have to integrate them. To me, the risk of that integration is worse than the risk of Mama raising them with the flock. If I had a hen with a history of killing chicks, I might feel differently. But if that were the case, I would have eaten that hen by now and eliminanted that problem.

Changing topics just a bit, I'll give you a link to a thread about isolating a broody hen while she is setting on the eggs. I think it may help you whether you decide to keep her with the flock or isolate her. If you leave her with the flock, please pay attention to the comments about marking the eggs and checking under her daily.

Isolate a Broody? Thread
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=213218

Just because I have not had that problem does not mean you will not have that problem. By the same token, just because somebody else had a problem does not mean you will have that problem. Good luck whichever way you decide.

 

[pinkyglory123]

What I did-some worked, some did not-some advice I ignored and wish I hadn't-some I figured out on my own and did work. Leaving my broody in the regular coop I really regret because I lost several chicks crushed by other hens. They are so vulnerable hatching and getting mobilized.
I moved surviving chicks and eggs to a large (german shepherd size) dog crate-mom never skipped a bit. Chicks actually can get thru the bars and back in. The crate is among the other hens in the main coop. Other hens interested in the chicks-mom is very protective. All coexisting-can see each other-since I lost so many will keep them seperate until I just feel more comfortable that they are safe. In a word bigger! Good luck with your hatch-keep weeding thru the info. It truly is a miracle!

 

[CoffeeCow]

I have 8 pullets and a cockerel in a coop that will comfortably house 45 chickens. I have 8 nesting boxes, very rarely do I see 2 in the same box, they have all picked their favorite one, and pretty consistently go there. I was actually thinking about putting nameplates on the boxes hehe

nobody has messed with Bugsy (the broody BO), and I hope it stays that way.

Having so much room in the coop i have decided to let her stay where she is, I loaded her up with just 7 eggs. I have a large pet carrier on standby just in case something bad happens. I am hoping that she can raise the chicks in the coop also, but again, I have a brooder standing by also.

I think I have all my bases covered here.

Loaded her up on the 4th, so its gonna be a christmas hatch. I'll keep you updated

Heres a pic of the mom to be: