BantamBabies
Chirping
- Sep 1, 2019
- 34
- 66
- 79
Hi I need some advice since this is my first time having chickens. I have 6 silkies/satins: 2 cockerels and 4 pullets. They’re 10 months old and have been laying for 7 weeks. 3 weeks ago my frizzled satin went broody while we were out of town and I came home to her sitting on 2 eggs and 2 decoy eggs. She was so persistent that I just let her do her thing. I tried moving her multiple times into the nesting box but she’d kick her eggs out and try and find others eggs to add to her clutch. I Candled the eggs and kept her two that were progressing. She chose a spot right in front of our ground level nesting boxes where we have straw bedding in the middle of the coop. She’s made a little 6 inch nesting hole in the straw. Today I discovering one had hatched. I waited until she was sleeping and moved her whole nest into a dog kennel with the door open, and set it in the same spot she’d been in the coop. I want to be able to protect her and the chicks a bit since the others pile near her to sleep and have access to the coop. Our coup is 10x10 with a screen wall in the center to make two equal 10x5 rooms, one side is the coop where they sleep and lay eggs and the other room is where all my feed is stored and is super cute thanks to my handy hubby. The chickens access their run where their food and water is by a little doggie door with a gradual ramp (the ramp took then a while to be confident with since silkies are super clumsy and can’t see well, hilarious to watch). My question is, do I need to put water and starter feed in the coop so they can eat? How do they drink and eat with mama when they’re so young? I can’t see them following her out the door onto the ramp and they wouldn’t be able to reach the waterer or the food. But if I put food in with them the others I fear would try and steal. Do I just put water and food in the dog crate and lock mama in with them? I could turn the other room into a nursery but it wouldn’t have a run so I could free range them out the front French doors. Any advice to make it the least about of interfering, meaning less work for me? Thanks.
