When it comes to raising chicks, I'm a two legged broody hen. I do what she does.
Chicks are raised outside in a wire brooder pen in the run, where adults can walk around them on three sides. Integration issues are nil, and they are totally integrated with the flock by 4 weeks old and the brooder comes out.
No heat lamps, ever. I use Mama Heating Pad. So no adjustments to natural day/night cycles when they finally go out. No angst on my part because the poor dears are crying and want Mommy to bring them in the house.
They learn to be chickens by watching the best - other chickens. I'm not trying to force a square peg into a round hole. I figure if a two pound broody hen can successfully raise chicks without books, the internet, experts and advice, why do we do it so differently and arrogantly think we're doing it better?
When I go out to do morning chores, the run door is opened and left open. They can come and go as they please, regardless of weather. Even the Silkies got no special treatment - underneath the "cute" they are chickens.
I don't chop, peel, de-seed, and core any scraps they get. They either eat it or they don't. If they don't, it becomes part of the Deep Litter. I don't bake eggshells out of some misguided belief that I'm killing bacteria before giving them to the chickens. Nobody is out there disinfecting the bugs in the yard or filtering the mud puddles they like to drink from, so I ain't gonna worry about it.
I don't break the bank or my hiney trying to save chickens that are doing poorly. By the time they finally allow themselves to show injury or sickness, it's no longer a matter of just correcting a problem, because whatever it is is too far along. I give them a few days, but if they aren't improving I'm not putting on a cape and becoming some masked hero. I did that once, with a chick named Scout. I spent months on him, just to end up processing him anyway for attacking me. The surprising result of being what some would call ruthless was that my flock became healthier.
@Beekissed was also my mentor,
@BantyChooks. How in the world she put up with my endless whining and fussing I don't know, but she did. She cleared the fog and taught me that I needed to decide if I was raising chickens or Divas. I will love and respect her forever.
My coop and run was simple (although it looks fancy in photos) because that was easier for me to keep clean and work in. It was solid, substantial, and withstood everything Mother Nature could throw at it without a single repair or adjustment. I switched from "deep bedding" to "deep litter", again under Bee's tutelage. I have been chickenless for over a year now - that coop and run are still in perfect shape. (Good thing, because it looks like we once again taking the chicken plunge next spring when we stop traveling so much)
And chicken math......what can I say about chicken math? I fell victim to it. They were so cute, right? We needed the eggs, right? Yeah, what I got was a flock that I couldn't manage well. 50 adorable little chicks soon become 50 adult chickens who need tending by a person who has some health issues and who travels extensively. That's 50 birds eating, more eggs than two people can sensibly use, 50 birds to dust, a ruined lawn, and oh, the noise level at times!! I learned to cull, either by processing or by rehoming, got down to manageable numbers, and the new flock will only be 8 birds. Period, I don't care how fluffy the chicks are. No roosters - don't need 'em, don't want 'em, and don't want more chicks.
And I think most important, I had to learn my own limitations and be proactive instead of reactive. When I rehomed my flock over a year ago, I was proud of the condition they were in. The irony is that they were responsible for that, not me. I just kept them fed, watered, and as safe from predators as humanly possible. The rest was up to them.
