Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Perris]

I've managed to fall behind on my own thread.

yeh, the political diversion was all your fault, as you'd gone awol ; nature abhors a vacuum, the mice play while the cat's away, idle hands make devil's work etc., it's a very familiar pattern Glad you're back in the saddle.

As the chief offender, I think some penance is probably due. How about my cheeky chappy Talgarth?

 

[BDutch]

Thanks for the detailed explanation and apology again.
View attachment 4198253

No need to apologise. I should have. For not being more clear in the first place.

I'm trying to move Periwinkle to a better nesting site but she is being so stubborn! When I finally got her used to the nest and slid eggs under her, she took off to a different one and regathered her plastic eggs.

This is very normal behaviour for broodies.
Relocating broodies is sometimes possible but often a failure.
I did it a couple of times with a 3-5 days plan:

1. Put 1/2 a cardboard box under the broody with the same nesting material and real or fake eggs. On the same spot,
2. Let het sit for a whole day or more (16-32 hours). Maybe add a little hay during the day to make her more comfortable.
3. Move here gently with box and all in the night to an enclosed spot where she can hatch her babies and has enough room to place a food/water station, poop and take a dust bath. Make sure you can open it or make the spot bigger as needed. If moving its difficult, ask for assistance .
4. If you are sure she is fine in the new spot, you can enlarge her prison or open up if the other chickens don’t make a fuss.

In general: It seems that if the chicks are close to hatch the chance the broody leaves them , is very small.

 

[fluffycrow]

How about my cheeky chappy Talgarth?
View attachment 4198263

He looks like a school art project, in the best way possible !

 

[Molpet]

Thank you. I'd forgotten about that pic. The ladies don't huddle in that closely very often.

Congratulations