Other People's Experience with raising chicks

[Aix sponsa]

I have a large brooder set up for starting chicks, but I want to hear from others that have let hens do the work. Instead of taking freshly hatched chicks and putting them in my brooder to let them grow until they are feathered so I can put them with the rest of my chickens, I would like to let my hens raise them.

I understand that I will lose some chicks this way, but I'd like to hear what others have experienced. Will the hen protect and raise the chicks, or will I probably lose most/all of them if I don't seperate them from the adult birds? I currently have 16 chickens. The brooding hen is a silver laced wyandotte, and I have Egyptian fayamous, Jersey giants, and leghorns.

Thanks for your time,

 

[five is my dog]

the broody hen raising the chicks will protect them well as long as shes a good mommy. you could separate them if you want to its safer to separate them. i would fence off a place in the existing coop so that integration to the flock wont be so hard. i would just put an old dog house in for them. you might loose 1 or 2 or more or NONE if you keep them together. but i doubt you would lose all of them usually a broody will become very protective after one death. the amount of agression to the chicks depends on how nice or mean your other chickens are. you also have to think about you rooster how agressive he is. the safest thing to do is separate them. good luck!!!!

 

[Aix sponsa]

I also have another question. My chickens free range. I let them out every morning and close the door every night. I have a hen that has been laying in a wooden barrel that I have set up between a barn pole and its support brace on the edge of the loft. The barrel is about 4 feet above the loft floor, and the loft is about 10 feet off of the ground. My question is, if a broody hen hatches a clutch up on the loft, will the chicks be OK or do I need to bring the nest down lower?

I am very familiar with wood ducks. I know that they can jump from up to 60 feet in a tree the day that they hatch, and they'll be fine. I'm just not sure how chickens do.

Ever had a chicken raise a clutch high off of the ground?


Thank you,

 

[five is my dog]

you could lower them i think i would. its safer and for babys it will be hard to fly back up maybe you could put some bricks out for steps. i dont think they would be able to fly up 4ft when they are just a few days old to go back up to the nest.