Spring is coming! I need advice

[Wavy]

Hello everyone! Spring is coming up! Which potentially means: chicks! My red Cochin bantam is almost a year old and really wants to lay on some eggs, but I have lots to choose from I think? Ellie (the red Cochin bantam) has been wanting to be a mom since November, but unfortunately the egg didn’t hatch so I put her back outside. Now spring is up and coming (slowly but surely...).

I have 7 chickens in total and I am only willing to have 10 in all, so I don’t know if I should let her have all 3 now, or just one chick a year. I like the idea of having a group of babies with each other, that way when they are old enough for the mom to kick them out they don’t feel so alone, but I am also concerned how many of them will be roosters. Almost all of my chickens are laying, all of them are of laying age but only one is interested in being a mom as of right now. That being said, I’m not sure if I want it to be her egg or not.

My rooster is a blue Cochin bantam (icon picture), and I have 2 more Cochin bantams (one is red, the other is birchen) , a standard golden laced Wyandotte Cochin, a barred rock, Rhode Island Red, and an Partridge Americauna. I know Ellie is laying and the Americauna, I don’t think the Birchen is laying right now and I can’t tell if the other eggs belong to the Rhode Island Red, the Barred Rock, or the standard Cochin. I am pretty sure the chicks will be sex linked and I will probably have a bunch of bantam females, however if you know something I don’t, feel free to let me know! If you have any suggestions on what to put underneath Ellie, say so! I want to keep it within the flock though.

Another thing, is that I have never bred chickens before! I have never gotten to a point with my chickens to let them hatch eggs, usually I raise them. Ellie knows I am good to be around the eggs (even though I take them) and even when she’s broody let’s me pick her up and pet her, but I am still concerned if she will let me near her kids, if she will let me bond with them. My chickens are pets and I love being around them and learning their personalities. I like to bond with them, which brings me to another concern,

If it’s a rooster I am afraid that I won’t be able to give it up. I really only want the one, but if I end up with more and I have already bonded with them, I’d be heartbroken for them if they had to goto a new home, and who knows what they’d do to them there! People aren’t always nice to their roosters. I also know animals bond with specific people and I would never want them to feel like they were unwanted, there’s just not enough room for another rooster. I guess you could say I am very empathetic when it comes to chickens, and I am wondering what you think and how you would find a safe home quickly.

Now my last but not least concern is that, I am a young man. I do plan on traveling and eventually moving out of the middle of nowhere. I am worried that my ability to bond with the upcoming chicks and keeping my bond with the chickens I have now will be at risk if I am away for to long, if I end up moving away sooner than later. I am traveling for spring break for about a week or two and then again for about 2 weeks in the summer and who knows where I am going after I come back from the summer! I know that where ever I move, I won’t be able to take them with me for at least 3 years. My parents are here but they just don’t take as good of care of them like I do, which also concerns me. Any advice is welcome! Please share your thoughts.

One last question;
Is there a specific temp that you let your chickens sit on eggs at? I was thinking when it reached 70 F is when I would let her sit on eggs. The highest it is going to be where I live in March is about 63 F.

Thank you!

 

[Mtnboomer]

You love your chickens dude! That is awesome! I can not offer advice on letting the hen hatch the eggs. My Brahmas rarely go broody and when they do, they never make it the full 21 days but rather abandon the eggs after the first week or so. However, when we hatch ours out we are about 95% successful (an egg or 2 develops but never hatches) and pretty close to 50/50 with roosters. If you are looking to add 3, you may consider having her sit on more to allow for failure to hatches.
Hope for the best but prepare for the worse. If you dont get any roosters, great! If you do, or all the eggs hatch and you have extra hens too, try to have homes ready for them ahead of time.
As far as leaving them, I've never left mine for more than 8 days simply because I can't afford to pay someone to come care for them longer than that and I have way too much stuff to do around here that I cant get that far behind. My birds are livestock, not pets but there is always 1 or 2 that are more social and are the first to great me in the mornings and hang around during daily chores. They have never seemed to notice my absence and still behave the same upon my return. 3 yrs may be a different matter if you intend to keep the same birds.
If your parents are not the dedicated chicken lovers that you have become, do you have nearby friends in the chicken world? Maybe they could help mom and dad care for them.

 

[Mrs. K]

In your case, I don't think I would add to this flock, until your life becomes more stable. As you say, you are about to leave home, and will leave this flock. In years to come, you will more than likely start a flock to come. It is a hobby that is important to you.

If you do decide to have chicks, I would recommend getting sex linked chicks so that you do get all pullets. Thereby eliminating the rooster issue. If you know in advance, that it would be very difficult to let a rooster go, you need to recognize that it can be VERY DIFFICULT to have some roosters in your flock, whereas you will need a separate coop/run.

Chicks raised with a broody hen, often times are a little skittish. Be patient, and they will follow the older birds lead.

Mrs K