My girl Pocahantas, who is not even old enough to lay an egg yet (for a silkie as I understand it) is such a good momma! She is one of two that hatched from my first incubator experiment, and she has been thrust into the mommy role since she hatched. Her sister, Daisy, has slept under her like she was a mother hen since day 1, and Poca' has resigned herself to that position. About two weeks ago I decided to move my recent hatch of 3 week old showgirls into the "playpen" with Poca' and Daisy, to see how they would get along together. It worked out pretty well......no blood.....just some pecking order adjustment between Daisy and the babies.
So today, I rehydrated some dried meal worms, (for extra protein) and put them down as a treat. The babies all came running to see what I was doing, but didn't have much interest. They are one of Poca's favorite treats next to tomatoes. So as soon as she figured out what I had put in the dish (her head feather are hard for her to see through) she picked one up and hustled to the middle of the playpen.....but she didn't dash away to gobble it up, she clucked with that "momma calling her chicks" voice and the babies came running! Then she would peck at the ground to get their interest and pick it up, hold it half in her mouth and let them eat it out of beak. She did this over and over until they started going to the dish themselves. She is only barely 5 months old and hasn't even layed an egg yet. Honestly I don't know for certain that "she" is a hen, I'm still just hoping against hopes. But that sure seemed maternal to me! I love my Poca, she's my buddy.
So today, I rehydrated some dried meal worms, (for extra protein) and put them down as a treat. The babies all came running to see what I was doing, but didn't have much interest. They are one of Poca's favorite treats next to tomatoes. So as soon as she figured out what I had put in the dish (her head feather are hard for her to see through) she picked one up and hustled to the middle of the playpen.....but she didn't dash away to gobble it up, she clucked with that "momma calling her chicks" voice and the babies came running! Then she would peck at the ground to get their interest and pick it up, hold it half in her mouth and let them eat it out of beak. She did this over and over until they started going to the dish themselves. She is only barely 5 months old and hasn't even layed an egg yet. Honestly I don't know for certain that "she" is a hen, I'm still just hoping against hopes. But that sure seemed maternal to me! I love my Poca, she's my buddy.
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