Safe to keep baby chicks in flock?

[Dingersdad]

I wouldnt the others will kill them and eat them

How have they made it for the previous 100+ years? It’s NATURAL for them to be raised by their mother hen within their flock. She will protect them as best she can. Yes, there will be altercations but they will learn. They will establish a “pecking order”.

 

[Poultrybonkers]

How have they made it for the previous 100+ years? It’s NATURAL for them to be raised by their mother hen within their flock. She will protect them as best she can. Yes, there will be altercations but they will learn. They will establish a “pecking order”.

Im not wasting time for a hen to hatch for others to eat them. Most broodyness in most breeds has been bred out of them. And ive had broody raised chicks...they are always stunted so i will stick to a bator

 

[FloppyGirl]

This spring/summer we added 54 chicks to our flock, all hatched and raised by broodies among the existing flock of 28 chickens (incl. two roosters). We never had any issue with other birds going after the chicks. Mamas were quick to remind anyone that got 'too close' to the chicks.

The issues we ran into was having a couple of hatching chicks getting crushed by hens wanting to use the nesting box to lay in. This only became an issue once an egg started to hatch and lost its structural integrity. We ended up building a chick hatchery area a few yards away, where mama hens/chicks could hatch in peace and it made a world of difference. A couple of chicks managed to fall out of nesting boxes before we had the hatchery (but were found in time) so moving them to an area where they were secure was a peace of mind.

I usually kept the newly hatched chicks and mama confined in the hatchery for the first week or so but after that they were off to free range. We have lots of trees in their area so there wouldn't be a danger of flying predators. I found the biggest danger to chicks is other broodies. We had hens hatch/raise chicks together in harmony and we had hens that were aggressive towards other hens/chicks. Our experience has been that hens that were raised together as chicks (bonded) usually are more open to co-parent.

All 70+ of our birds were integrated from the start and seem to get along. There is certainly a 'clique' of chicks that hatched out at the hatchery as opposed to those that hatched out in the coop, even though they are only a few feet away.

 

[625649]

I have a broody TINY BANTUM hen a dozen ducks eggs a friend gave me not fully thinking about it. (No clue why, I lost my mind maybe or thought for some reason they actually wouldn't hatch? Or that the size was so ridiculous she'd give up and stop being broody?) I had 2 eggs not develop at all, but she hatched 10 healthy happy ducklings and fiercely defended them against the other chickens AND ME! I couldn't touch them either. She did lose her chicken mind when her babies (all oddly much, much bigger than she) took to water the first time. She ran around the paddle pool screaming her head off. She slept with them in a pile on the ground, took care of them until I had to adopt them out because I wasn't set up for 10 ducks and quickly running out of space and food.

 

[Sussex19]

This year I've had around 40 something chicks raised in the flock, and not one of the other hens have hurt them.
I do block off the nesting box when they are hatching, as I have had eggs broken and this seems to happen more around hatch date.

 

[Mary Poopins Love]

Alright, so from what I have heard. Be careful about keeping mama and baby in the flock, but don't be afraid. Check to see if the babies are living well and not being pecked by bullies. The mama and the flock will help or hurt the outcome. Moral: Cautious, careful, watchful. But not afraid. Thank you everybody!

 

[lifein1840]

Hey there! I have ten hens and a rooster. I don't have a broody hen right now, but next hatch I was wondering if it would be safe to keep any chicks with mama in the main coop with everybody. Any ideas? I did my second hatch ever about 5 weeks ago and put the two chicks away from mama. I would love to keep chicks with mama so they would not need to be introduced to the flock. Thank you so much!

I have never had an issue with leaving the flock together.

 

[Mary Poopins Love]

I think most of my girls would be great mamas.

 

[MarlaMac]

My broody just hatched 4 little peeps. In the coop with other birds the entire sitting and hatching. She brought them out day two to scratch around. Today (day 3), Rooster Corburn was helping teach the babies to eat what mom scratches up. This is the 2nd brood she has brought up this way!

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

This is my in-coop brooder so you have an idea of what I'm talking about.
View attachment 3335825

That’s awesome, what a great idea