So, we thought she had hatched all her eggs, but no. She's sitting in there with another hen helping incubate her own and the other hens eggs. Her chicks are just sitting in there waiting for their mom to peck some food in. Will the chicks be okay?
they'll be okay for about 3 days without food although you should put a small dish of water near her nest. if she's a tame hen who doesn't mind you handling her babies, you coulds take them out and offer them food a couple times a day
We went through that earlier this week, as well. Olga had 6 chicks that had hatched & there were still 2 more unhatched in the nest (well, there were 5 unhatched, but 3 were duds & the other 2 were still warm and were peeping inside). We brought in the two, put one in the incubator (which is on like day 8 of the current batch) and I put the other one, which had pipped the shell, in my bra (got the idea from another BYC thread). After about an hour, I passed the egg off to my husband so I could cook dinner, and he hatched the chick in his shirt on his warm, sweaty belly while I was cooking dinner! He's now the proud mama of a mixed breed/black mottled java chickie!
This happen to me once before t0o. I had a serama hen on eggs and then another one came and started laying eggs with her a week later. They stayed there together, But when eggs started hatching they both decided they were done sitting on eggs. I told my husband that we should have taken the momma out that had been in there the longest with the chicks that had hatched and left the other momma in there. He didn't like the idea because of course we were leaving to go on vacation for 4 days. When we got back the eggs were cold, but when cracked they all had developed. What should I have done....I didn't have an incubator at the time.
Quote:Not sure I understand the part I emphasized above? Mom does not "peck some food in". If she has chicks and is still on the nest, you need to provide food and water within reach for her and the chicks. Since she is still sitting, you may have to help the chicks learn about food and water. Gently dip their beaks in the water and tap you finger on the food, they're pretty fast learners. Congrats on the hatching!
