hi,
New to the forum and looking for a bit of advice.
Came home with three serama hens today (planned purchase), two were broody and sat on eggs at the breeders and he asked if I wanted the eggs as well. Excitedly I said yes, really thinking I had no chance of them returning to the eggs once in their new home.
Surprise suprise, BOTH the broodies have settled on four eggs each in the quarantine coop. It's one of the typical eBay coops with raised house, sloping roof and integral pen, advertised for 6 full sized hens when it's not even fit for three type scenario. I use it as a hospital coop when needed and had planned on using it for a single broody Pekin and some fertilised eggs at a later date.
Never raised chicks under broodies. I'm a bit thrown by their willingness to sit after being transported!
So, do I let them brood and hatch side by side, with another non broody serama knocking about in the pen? Do I remove the two hens with their respective chicks once hatched and house them separately to raise the chicks?
I am fortunate enough to have one other free pen and a rabbit hutch but am reluctant to move them now they have settled in to brood, plus, all three seramas are newbies to my bantam flock so I'll have to integrate much later than I anticipated, another thing to think through. And if I moved both broodies with their chicks I'd have one hen alone.
The breeder hadn't noticed they were sitting as he had been away so no decent idea of hatch dates, he guessed they have been sitting for about two weeks, so time is of the essence to decide what to do.
And finally! The ramp from pen to coop is rather steep, I'm concerned the chicks won't cope, another reason to possibly move them once hatched perhaps?
The moral of the story, never go chicken shopping with children who convince you to get 'chicken baby eggs' pfft
New to the forum and looking for a bit of advice.
Came home with three serama hens today (planned purchase), two were broody and sat on eggs at the breeders and he asked if I wanted the eggs as well. Excitedly I said yes, really thinking I had no chance of them returning to the eggs once in their new home.
Surprise suprise, BOTH the broodies have settled on four eggs each in the quarantine coop. It's one of the typical eBay coops with raised house, sloping roof and integral pen, advertised for 6 full sized hens when it's not even fit for three type scenario. I use it as a hospital coop when needed and had planned on using it for a single broody Pekin and some fertilised eggs at a later date.
Never raised chicks under broodies. I'm a bit thrown by their willingness to sit after being transported!
So, do I let them brood and hatch side by side, with another non broody serama knocking about in the pen? Do I remove the two hens with their respective chicks once hatched and house them separately to raise the chicks?
I am fortunate enough to have one other free pen and a rabbit hutch but am reluctant to move them now they have settled in to brood, plus, all three seramas are newbies to my bantam flock so I'll have to integrate much later than I anticipated, another thing to think through. And if I moved both broodies with their chicks I'd have one hen alone.
The breeder hadn't noticed they were sitting as he had been away so no decent idea of hatch dates, he guessed they have been sitting for about two weeks, so time is of the essence to decide what to do.
And finally! The ramp from pen to coop is rather steep, I'm concerned the chicks won't cope, another reason to possibly move them once hatched perhaps?
The moral of the story, never go chicken shopping with children who convince you to get 'chicken baby eggs' pfft
