mama and chicks question

[Lynn WA]

Hi all!My hen, Flopsy, hatched 4 chicks 3 weeks ago, and I've had them in a 2 X 4 brooder ever since (mama and babies). She is a wonderful mother, but it's clear that she is ready to get out. She tried to fly out yesterday when I was adding wood chips.

I'm concerned about the babies. I have 2 other hens that are 14 months old and 3 that are 4 months old. I'm afraid that the others will pick on the chicks. If I let just Flopsy out, do I need to put her back in the evening so the babies can sleep under her? Or do I just keep her out and put a light over the babies? If I do that, will mama accept the babies when I finally add them to the coop?

This is the first time I've had a hen hatch eggs, so I don't want to mess up!

Many thanks!

 

[Lynn WA]

Any thoughts? I posted this earlier when there weren't many people logged on. Any help would be appreciated!

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

They'll be fine as long as they are with their mama. She'll turn into a tiny feathery velociraptor and the other hens will stay far, far away. No worries.

Can you leave an opening in the brooder pen? Mama will take the babies out into the run/yard and they will all satelite around her. At bedtime she will herd them all back into the nest and they will tuck themselves up under her. They will stay fairly close to her at this age. As they get bigger they get braver. Seperating them just makes your job harder eventually. It is ever so much easier to just let mama hen take care of the raising.

Congrats on the new babies!

 

[walbarbsa]

Ditto --- mama's are the best for taking care of their babies. My mama and three babies will be out of the brooder next week; they'll have access to the brooder, though, so they can return in the eves. Eventually, after satellite-ing around her for a few more days/weeks, they'll venture farther and father away.

Have fun watching this happen.

 

[Lynn WA]

Thank you so much for your feedback. My dilemma is that the brooder is off by itself with no access to the coop/run. Is three weeks old enough to let them in the roost so they have access to the run, or is that asking for trouble?

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

I hatch mine out in the main coop with all the other chickens. I block off a broody pen for the last week of sitting and the first few days after hatching. After that I remove the divider and let them have at it. The big chickens have been known to try for a chick, but they generally only do it once. My silkies get pretty ferocious when their babies are threatened. Generally the mama and babies stay at one end of the run and all the other chickens go to the other end of the run to get away from her!

Can you put a dog kennel or something in the main coop so mama has a quiet area to go to? She likely will be fine, but she needs a place to go until the babies can roost with her. Maybe a straw lined milk crate or something like that?

 

[HBuehler]

I have a leghorn(yeah no one told her they are non sitters) with 8 chicks.She could take on a mountain lion and win when it comes to her chicks.She's living with my month old chicks in their toddler coop-with outside pasture.It's a big coop so she keeps her area and our older chicks know better than wander in her direction.

 

[Judy]

You might try putting them all together before mama quits being a mama entirely, and see if she will protect them. You can rig something up so the chicks can escape to a safe spot if they get attacked and she does not protect them.

Here is how one member does it, with chicks who have been raised by themselves in a brooder:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=14951