- May 1, 2013
- 12
- 2
- 26
My husband and I purchased a pair of Welsummers late winter. He was eager to continue their blood line and hatched several of their eggs in the incubator. Just as he wanted to hatch more for Easter; our hen went broody on March 30th. I thought about breaking her but decided against it. She chose one of the upper nest boxes about 18" off the ground and I left a mix of 5 eggs under her.
I began to worry about what to do with her as it got closer to the hatch date. I read so many articles about moving her and the eggs, moving her and the chicks once they hatched, confining her during lock down and so on... I thought about moving them away from the rest of the flock, taking the chicks and raising them by heat lamp or making a pen within the coop. I was about to drive myself crazy and called my mother for advice. She told me to just leave them alone, not to worry and that Mother Hen knows what she is doing. I tried to trust this but still worried.
I fed Mother Hen meal worms and apples while she sat on the nest almost every evening and told her everything I knew and have read about raising chicks. (I'm sure she needed advice from me) She would leave the nest once a day for long periods leaving me to wonder if the eggs were staying warm enough and if they were getting turned enough. I worried that other hens would lay in the nest or break the eggs and that they would never hatch.
On Easter Sunday I went to the coop and was so excited to hear faint little cheeps and peeps coming from under Mother Hen! I ran to the house to tell my husband and grab the camera, tears streaming down my face the whole way. She hatched 4 out of 5 eggs! I couldn't have been happier and tried to live in the moment but immediately started worrying about what to do next?! I called my mom to hear her say again "leave them alone".
When I got home the next evening Mother Hen had all four chicks out of the nest box and in the corner of the coop. I put out chick starter and water. Several of the other 19 chickens seemed curious of the new arrivals but Mother Hen kept them away and they lost interest pretty quick. Others didn't seem to notice or care.
The chicks are growing so fast and began roosting along side their mother at just a few weeks old. One morning I went to the coop to let everyone out and she had them on the roost in front of the window. One under each wing, one between her feet and one on her back. She takes them all over the yard and through the woods showing them all the best spots to look for bugs. I never imagined how I would feel watching her with them. I find it exciting, calming and humbling all at the same time. I have learned so much and worry less. I think sometimes we tend to over think and complicate things. Nature knows what she is doing and when left to do as she intends everything works out in the end.
First Look - 4/20/14 Easter Sunday
In the run - 4/24/14
In the woods - 4/27/14
Favorite tree 5/9/14
I began to worry about what to do with her as it got closer to the hatch date. I read so many articles about moving her and the eggs, moving her and the chicks once they hatched, confining her during lock down and so on... I thought about moving them away from the rest of the flock, taking the chicks and raising them by heat lamp or making a pen within the coop. I was about to drive myself crazy and called my mother for advice. She told me to just leave them alone, not to worry and that Mother Hen knows what she is doing. I tried to trust this but still worried.
I fed Mother Hen meal worms and apples while she sat on the nest almost every evening and told her everything I knew and have read about raising chicks. (I'm sure she needed advice from me) She would leave the nest once a day for long periods leaving me to wonder if the eggs were staying warm enough and if they were getting turned enough. I worried that other hens would lay in the nest or break the eggs and that they would never hatch.
On Easter Sunday I went to the coop and was so excited to hear faint little cheeps and peeps coming from under Mother Hen! I ran to the house to tell my husband and grab the camera, tears streaming down my face the whole way. She hatched 4 out of 5 eggs! I couldn't have been happier and tried to live in the moment but immediately started worrying about what to do next?! I called my mom to hear her say again "leave them alone".
When I got home the next evening Mother Hen had all four chicks out of the nest box and in the corner of the coop. I put out chick starter and water. Several of the other 19 chickens seemed curious of the new arrivals but Mother Hen kept them away and they lost interest pretty quick. Others didn't seem to notice or care.
The chicks are growing so fast and began roosting along side their mother at just a few weeks old. One morning I went to the coop to let everyone out and she had them on the roost in front of the window. One under each wing, one between her feet and one on her back. She takes them all over the yard and through the woods showing them all the best spots to look for bugs. I never imagined how I would feel watching her with them. I find it exciting, calming and humbling all at the same time. I have learned so much and worry less. I think sometimes we tend to over think and complicate things. Nature knows what she is doing and when left to do as she intends everything works out in the end.
First Look - 4/20/14 Easter Sunday
In the run - 4/24/14
In the woods - 4/27/14
Favorite tree 5/9/14
