Mama hen maybe abandoning chicks at 3 days?

[JackieDohoney]

Hey guys, I haven’t found an answer to this question yet despite looking. So, I have a hen that somehow managed to hide a nest from me over the last few weeks. I go out to the barn three days ago and there was my hen. I still have no idea where she did it, but somehow little Miss Debbie Harry had a whopping 13 chicks following her around the pasture. (I’m guessing the three week heat wave contributed to her being able to hatch that many eggs considering her size). Of course I flipped out because this was completely unplanned and all of my brooding areas are full (rooster being nursed back to health). In any case, I was able to wrangle them all into the barn after a while. We had to rig up an emergency brooding area for mama and her 13 illegitimate children. It’s definitely not ideal, but they seemed to be pretty happy for the first three days. Now on day 4, I just went out to check on their water and mama wasn’t in the pen. She was wandering around the barn. Truth be told, there was another hen running around inside the barn, so I’m not sure if she was running the hen off or if she was telling me she’s about to abandon them. She jumped right back in the pen and fluffed up when I came near to change the watererers. I’m inclined to think the former, but anyone else have any experience with this kind of situation? I’ve been raising chickens for about seven years and I’ve never had a hen get that far away from her babies voluntarily. Thanks all for any advice!
-Jackie

 

[FrostRanger]

I'd just let the chicks roam with her. She'll take care of showing them the ropes and integration. They should be strong enough to keep up with her at this point

 

[WoDia]

@JackieDohoney
Wow! Beautiful B I G family! Glad you were able to gather all of them and get them to a safe area of the barn. Miss Debbie Harry was probably “stretching her legs” away from the chicks for a little bit. You said she returned, puffing up, when you were checking the waterers, so she’s definitely in mama mode. The chicks couldn’t follow… otherwise, you would have likely seen all of them roaming around with her. You said the brooding area is not ideal, so work on a very secure, predator-proof place for them. If you trust the flock around tiny chicks, let them spend some supervised time together. IF that works out well, you could create a place for them in a corner of the (safe) coop. She was a VERY lucky little hen to have NOT been found by predators. If you’re going to free range, be aware that little chicks are easy targets. Congratulations for your “surprise” family!

 

[JackieDohoney]

I'd just let the chicks roam with her. She'll take care of showing them the ropes and integration. They should be strong enough to keep up with her at this point

That’s the thing. They are following her great. The problem is that she got out of the pen and left them alone in it. I wouldn’t have had a problem with them just running around the barn, but it’s only closed off by a livestock gate. There are way too many escape holes for the babies to get out. It’s been well over 90 degrees for the last three weeks, so I can’t let them run around loose in that kind of heat. They’ve already gotten themselves separated from mama, which is why we set up the emergency pen. We’re planning to switch them to the brooder over the weekend after we set up a new nursing pen for our rooster. I’m just curious if anyone else has any experience with a hen abandoning chicks that early.

 

[Indio Gigante Lover]

In my experience Mamma hens definitely have their own thoughts on what is an ideal place for a nest & where to raise their chicks. I've had a few pick strange places for nests or just show up with chicks. I'd agree Mom felt threatened by the other hen & went after her. If that make-shift brood spot isn't secure there may come a time that Mom decides she wants to get the chicks out of there & it's really amazing what good escape artists Moms & chicks can be!

 

[JackieDohoney]

@JackieDohoney
Wow! Beautiful B I G family! Glad you were able to gather all of them and get them to a safe area of the barn. Miss Debbie Harry was probably “stretching her legs” away from the chicks for a little bit. You said she returned, puffing up, when you were checking the waterers, so she’s definitely in mama mode. The chicks couldn’t follow… otherwise, you would have likely seen all of them roaming around with her. You said the brooding area is not ideal, so work on a very secure, predator-proof place for them. If you trust the flock around tiny chicks, let them spend some supervised time together. IF that works out well, you could create a place for them in a corner of the (safe) coop. She was a VERY lucky little hen to have NOT been found by predators. If you’re going to free range, be aware that little chicks are easy targets. Congratulations for your “surprise” family!

Thank you! I’ll be honest, I freaked out crying because I was not at all prepared for babies, much less this many. 13 is so many for her size. She’s half Ayam Cemani and half White Crested Polish. So she’s just an average-sized hen.

I had two roosters who were very friendly suddenly get into it, so they’ve both now been separated into what is normally my largest brooders while they recover. I’m definitely not comfortable with letting the babies roam loose. I have two hens including one black giant that have already proven they can’t be trusted. I’m not willing to risk it with the others. I’m glad to hear it sounds like you agree that she probably wasn’t trying to abandon them. They might not have been planned, but I definitely am already attached! I even kept checking on them during the *SEVEN HOURS* of fireworks last night!

 

[DandyBanty23]

That’s the thing. They are following her great. The problem is that she got out of the pen and left them alone in it. I wouldn’t have had a problem with them just running around the barn, but it’s only closed off by a livestock gate. There are way too many escape holes for the babies to get out. It’s been well over 90 degrees for the last three weeks, so I can’t let them run around loose in that kind of heat. They’ve already gotten themselves separated from mama, which is why we set up the emergency pen. We’re planning to switch them to the brooder over the weekend after we set up a new nursing pen for our rooster. I’m just curious if anyone else has any experience with a hen abandoning chicks that early.

She might not be abandoning them, instead just roaming. If you've got the barn penned so babies can't get out they probably couldn't figure out how to follow her?

 

[JackieDohoney]

In my experience Mamma hens definitely have their own thoughts on what is an ideal place for a nest & where to raise their chicks. I've had a few pick strange places for nests or just show up with chicks. I'd agree Mom felt threatened by the other hen & went after her. If that make-shift brood spot isn't secure there may come a time that Mom decides she wants to get the chicks out of there & it's really amazing what good escape artists Moms & chicks can be!

Lol no kidding! I looked everywhere for three hours and still can’t find her original nest! I mean she really did get one over on me! This is one of my biggest farm fears, I’ve never had this happen before. But I talked to my husband and we’re already planning on putting together new pens for my sweet dumb little roosters to live in so I can get the babies a secure home. I swear, it’s like a soap opera in that barn. The Clucks of Our Lives

 

[JackieDohoney]

She might not be abandoning them, instead just roaming. If you've got the barn penned so babies can't get out they probably couldn't figure out how to follow her?

No, they’re too small to get out just yet. It’s about three feet high so they haven’t figured out how to jump that yet.

 

[WoDia]

Thank you! I’ll be honest, I freaked out crying because I was not at all prepared for babies, much less this many. 13 is so many for her size. She’s half Ayam Cemani and half White Crested Polish. So she’s just an average-sized hen.

I had two roosters who were very friendly suddenly get into it, so they’ve both now been separated into what is normally my largest brooders while they recover. I’m definitely not comfortable with letting the babies roam loose. I have two hens including one black giant that have already proven they can’t be trusted. I’m not willing to risk it with the others. I’m glad to hear it sounds like you agree that she probably wasn’t trying to abandon them. They might not have been planned, but I definitely am already attached! I even kept checking on them during the *SEVEN HOURS* of fireworks last night!

That is a huge amount of eggs. She doesn’t even look big enough to cover that many! She’s certainly a special little mama. Terrific job! It would be nearly impossible to NOT get attached! So adorable, and such a pretty mama too. Well, it sounds like any introductions to the flock are out of the question for chick safety. Please keep us updated with how the new family is doing. And, photos are always appreciated!