Totally converted to broody raised chicks!

[Jojosine]

I’m totally converted to broody raised chicks. Now that I live on a larger piece of property, it was finally time to let a broody mama hatch out some babies! I used a hen that’s extremely dedicated to sitting, has a good temperament, and is docile even when broody since I wanted to be able to handle the chicks to make them as friendly as brooder babies. My bantam Cochin frizzle hen Millie fit that criteria! I let her sit on 7 pure bred Ameraucana eggs, 6 hatched, and she’s an absolutely wonderful, attentive, and gentle mother. The chicks are thriving and are extremely healthy and vigorous with pretty much no work from me! It’s been in the 30s at night and they’re doing fantastic with mama Millie. Millie also lets me hang out with them and pick them up as I please with zero fuss!
I built a broody mama area in my chicken yard and rigged up a little prefab coop for them to sleep in at night. She brooded and is raising the chicks in this area until the chicks are large enough to be integrated. Millie isn’t very high on the pecking order so I do worry about letting the chicks and her mingle when they’re so small. The broody area is 48sq ft anyways, so plenty big enough until the chicks are around 6-8 weeks old! Healthy, sweet chicks that don’t have to be coddled indoors is so amazing! Millie will definitely be hatching out and raising many more future batches of chicks… next might be olive eggers or Isabel Ameraucanas.

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I'm very impressed with your broody area: it looks very sturdy!

 

[Jojosine]

Broodies are so convenient, aren't they? I'm letting one hatch chicks every year, she's awesome. The broody doesn't have to be high in the pecking order to be able to protect her chicks though. The mama hormones give her extra courage. My designated broody was second from the bottom before she hatched her first chicks, and smaller than most of the flock. But when those chicks hatched... Oh man, feathers would fly if anybody (other than me) dared to get close to the chicks! She would even go after The Queen. After her chicks grew up and left the flock, she kept her elevated status. She would defer to the queen, but pretty much no longer take from anybody else. She's on her 3rd brood right now and by now everybody knows to leave her alone when she has chicks. I don't separate her, she stays with the flock.

We've got one like yours: Bib Vicious had disappeared for 3 weeks somewhere in the wild and came back with 7 chicks. She is well and truly vicious though, chasing the other two broodies away (not touching the other babies thankfully) and also attacks us if she thinks the babies are in danger. Mind you, she has also taught her babies that they can eat out of our hands, so her babies are actually the tamest!
It will be interesting to see if Harvey, the rooster, is still boss when she goes back to the main flock.