Managing a Coop w/Newborn Chick(s)

[Regaj]

I have a small flock of White Leghorns - one rooster and three hens. One of the hens went broody ~3 weeks ago. I've let her do her thing (bless her heart... sitting on a nest for three weeks must be crazy hard!). Anyway, a week ago, during one of her infrequent escapades out into the yard, I took the opportunity to quickly replace the bedding in the coop. When I opened the door, I found she was sitting on 13 eggs!

There's no way my coop has space for anything like the four birds I already have, plus as many as 13 new chicks. So I removed seven eggs, leaving six.

A few hours ago, during my mid-afternoon visit, I found the first, newborn chick. It was resting quietly right next to momma in the nest box.

I raised my original flock of six birds, four years ago, from a mail-order nursery. When those 3-day-old chicks arrived in the mail, my wife and I dipped their beaks in the water dish, so they'd know what that was, and then placed them in their brooder, in the corner of our living room. That's where they lived for their first five weeks, and so it was easy to see how they were doing.

My intent since my hen went broody a few weeks ago was to support her in any way necessary, but to by and large let her do the raising of these chicks. That's where I need y'all's advice.

My first concern is water. I normally do not keep water inside the coop, as I found the birds quickly made a mess of that while moving around inside. I button up the coop at dusk; and let them out again at daybreak. The waterer is just a few feet away from the pop door. That works fine for adult birds, but clearly not for newborn chicks (who may not even leave the coop for however long?).

With that in mind, I began placing a second, smaller waterer in the sixth nest box (there are six nest boxes... my broody hen is in the first box; the water is in the last box) a few weeks ago. I can't really tell if any of the birds have availed themself of that second waterer. And, in particular, I don't know if my broody mama has done so. So I don't if she knows to walk her new chicks (I'm assuming there may be more) over there to show them. And even if she does, I don't know if the setup is conducive to a tiny chick getting to the waterer, inside the nest box. There is a board, a couple inches tall, they would have to climb over. Hopefully you can see from the picture more or less what I'm talking about.

I also have a couple other questions, but I'll hold them for a moment. Making sure the little ones have water is my biggest concern.

Any advice?

 

[Lady of McCamley]

First off congratulations to momma. A White Leghorn going broody. Who'd a thunk! (Broodiness has pretty much been bred out of them for the sake of high laying production).

Secondly, there are MANY ways to do this. It just depends on the personality of momma and babes...ie how bright the bulbs are lit. Some handle all obstacles keeping all alive and in tow. Others? Well, not so much. You have to adjust obstacles.

Okay. You've done good. You got some water near the littles in the coop, a first problem. Momma will likely sit on the nest for a couple of days until the others have hatched. There will likely be some staggering as all eggs were not set on the same day (since obviously SHE was collecting and setting not you). You will want to pull out any unhatched eggs after 2 days of the first hatched babe as momma will need to take all babes to food and water once the last one dries out and fluffs.

Once momma abandons the nest (assuming she does...some get stuck sitting on unhatched eggs and neglect the hatched babes...which is why you remove the unhatched eggs after 2 days from first babe hatching)...she will take the babes to food and water (the yolk that was absorbed into their abdomen upon hatch supplies them the first two days of life). Having food and water close in the coop the first couple of days to a week is really helpful, especially for a first time broody, as momma and babes navigate to water.

Or...she may decide to take them down the ramp into the run and set up camp under the coop or somewhere in the run if the babes can't navigate the ramp back up. The ramp accessibility can cause problems, depending on your ramp, as I often find babes very able to follow DOWN the ramp but not so able UP the ramp (leaving stranded babes at night with a confused momma...depending on how bright mom and babes are...some manage the ramp just fine first night.)

To avoid ramp problems, I actually have a designated broody hutch that I keep momma and babes the first 2 weeks for those really cherished hatches. Others, a more "casual" hatch, I simply let them brood in the main coop and navigate. Amazingly I've had years with 3 hens co-sharing the coop and everyone making it up and down...last year I had a hen disappear behind the wood pile and return with 6 chicks...after I destroyed 7 eggs from her hidden pile (so I know the "surprise" you just received).

Then I've had years when NOBODY can make it up the ramp, find water, find food, and I've got utter mayhem and lost chicks.

So watch. And wait. First set up food and water in the main coop. You don't have a lot of foot traffic, so that likely will work well until momma wants to take babes into the run. Then you'll have to watch to see if babes are smart enough to make it back up the ramp. If the ramp is steep, you can create a mini-ramp, or two, to help with accessibility. It can be as simple as a roll of hardware cloth strategically placed. Some nights, I have to round up babes and place with momma until they all figure it out. (I highly recommend a little butterfly net as the precious buggers are fast to catch.)

That should get you started.

Good luck to you and momma.

Again. Congratulations. A White Leghorn. Wow. Who'd a thunk.

LofMc

 

[Regaj]

Thanks so much for your taking the time to post your kind, gracious, and full-of-wisdom post, @Lady of McCamley. All of this is new to me, and so I'm definitely flying by the seat of my pants!

When I opened the coop up this morning, I was obviously curious to see if any new chicks had hatched overnight. I couldn't tell, because momma was spread out over the nest. Even the first little babe from yesterday was under her.

But when I went out a few hours later to give them their mid-morning treat, I heard all this commotion coming from the coop. Walking around to the back, I peered through the window. It was momma, walking around inside the coop and clucking away. Peewee, the at-least-temporary name we've taken to calling the little one from yesterday, was following her around.

Momma walked over to the waterer I had put in the last nest box, took a drink, and then looked back at Peewee, obviously trying to get her little one to imitate her.

It didn't. But a minute later momma headed out the pop door. Peewee trundled along right behind her.

Out in the grass, momma headed over to the big waterer which is their normal source of water. Again, she tried to show Peewee how to drink. Again, it didn't.

Worried that perhaps the little chick couldn't make it up high enough to get to the water (I keep the waterer on a couple-inch-thick paving stone), I went back in the house and retrieved one of the little chick waterers that I used when my original brood was small. Filled with fresh water, I brought that out and placed it on the ground not far from the pop door. Once again, momma came over and showed Peewee how to drink. Again, it didn't. But I stopped worrying about water once I was certain the little chick could get to it.

I expected momma to stay out for a while, but then to return to the coop so she could continue sitting on the nest. Worrying whether Peewee would be able to make it up the ramp, I pulled up a yard chair and sat down to watch.

Nope. An hour went by. Then another. Then a bunch more. Momma seemed entirely content to spend the day outdoors with her single, new little babe. I sat there in the chair all day enjoying it. What a privilege to watch such a dutiful, ardent mom teaching her one-day-old chick about the big, wide world.

Even their mid-afternoon treat - which I expected momma to ignore. Nope. When I put the scratch grain and the sunflower seeds and the mealworms out for the others, momma came running just like she always did before she went broody. Peewee right after her.

I'm guessing after all these hours off the nest, the rest of the eggs are destined to not hatch. But, wow, what a whirlwind of a day!

That's momma and Peewee on the far left.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Congratulations on momma and Peewee. Yes, she's abandoned the nest to take care of the oldest.

Most likely the rest of the eggs, which were laid on different days, will not hatch now. If you had the mind to, you could put them in the incubator and see how it goes...but you'd have staggered chicks that might or might not graft as well with momma who is now busy with the older chick.

Watch as evening comes to make sure momma chooses a good destination to take up for herself and the little. Be aware that chirping of baby chicks is music to the ears of predators.

Be careful of your large waterers, if they are dog bowls, as babes can (and do) fall in and drown. A regular waterer is fine.

Good luck with the little brood. <3

LofMc

 

[Regaj]

Ten days in and momma and chick continue to do well.

You were right, @Lady of McCamley ... little Peewee was unable to make it back up the ramp on that first night. I had piled a bunch of bedding under the ramp so it was less a "walking up the plank" kind of deal and more like walking up this little hill to the pop door. Didn't help.

No worries. After a couple of failed attempts, momma simply walked up under the coop and that's where the two of them spent the night. I was a little nervous about leaving the pop door open overnight - in the four years I've had my chickens I've never done that. But it didn't seem right to lock momma and Peewee outside (even though I knew neither were going to go in). And so I just left the electric fence on all night, which provides decent - but not perfect - protection from land-based predators.

My chickens don't free range. But their "yard" is enclosed by two 164-foot connected-together sections of electric fencing. So they have close to 7,000 square feet of area, with several large trees, bushes, and shrubbery providing lots of shade and cover. Momma spends most of her day walking all over this area, little Peewee in tow, showing it everything. It just tickles me to see them together, and with the other birds (who seem entirely accepting of this new, junior member of their flock).

Last night, when I went out at dusk to check on them, Momma and Peewee were missing from under the coop. Opening the door, there they were, back inside one of the nest boxes.

I was happy to be able to button up the coop, knowing they were all safe.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Congratulations Little PeeWee and Momma. The world is a fascinating place.

LofMc