OMGOMGOMG 3 hatched today! Oh, a few Qs!

[chicknmania]

We always leave the babies with the mom. She will teach them things. Ours are free range so we always keep mom and babies in their own pen til the babies are about six weeks old, not because we are afraid of the flock but to give them a chance against predators, and it makes momma feel more secure. But especially if yours are in a pen they should be fine. One of our hens who hatched ONE chick this summer was devoted to her baby; even after we let them out to join the flock she would still lead her baby into a pen whenever she got the opportunity, so that's how we knew they get some security from that. Baby is about 13 or 14 weeks old now and she STILL hangs out with momma; they are cute together and nice to see momma teaching her baby everything she knows to stay safe as possible.

 

[secuono]

I'm just worried that since they are Japs, the babies will be just as unfriendly and flighty towards me as the rest of the flock it. I'm kinda sick of it..lol.

 

[Mesquite]

They are cute as they can be. I have had my chickens (dark cornish and the oddball rooster, a silver spangled hamburg) for a little over a year now and have had four hatchings so far. The first three were only 2 at a time. This time I got 4. When I came back from a weekend away the person that had opened and closed the coop for me had not gathered any eggs so I put any that were warm under one hen that was sitting so I had more chance of them hatching all in the dame day or two and that seemed to work better. With the others, the hen quit the nest after the first couple days when she started teaching the ones already hatched to scratch. When I bought the origional flock, they were all vacinated. I have not done anything with the ones that have hatched. So far all the new one have been roosters and have been or will be dinner some night. If I dont ever get any chickens from anywhere else do I need to worry about vacinating any little hens that come about or roosters that I decide to keep? How old should they be and how old can they be to vacinate and how it it done?

 

[secuono]

What were they vaccinated for? I think some things are more to do with keeping things clean and just not introducing outside contaminates, like new birds or walking in the same shoes from a strange coop and then your own.