when will mama hen start laying again?

[reginak]

I have a mama hen who hatched out a mini-clutch (3 chicks) a week ago. How soon should I expert her to start laying again? She is being a great mom, by the way.

Thanks
Regina

 

[asher]

A few weeks after she decides the babies no longer need her. That will depend on your chicken and her babies.

 

[reginak]

oh ... weeks? months?

Thanks. I'm just feeling my way along ... somehow I thought she'd start laying again a few days after they hatched out. Oh well. The peeps are worth it

 

[asher]

hehe Probably 4-6 weeks or so for her to stay with the babies and then a little bit to get her laying cycle regular again...generally the moms will stay with them until they no longer need a heat source or protection.

It's kinda like a mom when she's had a baby. Takes a while until she feels up to it again. hehe (Not nearly as long for chickens, thankfully! ;-) )

 

[reginak]

*sigh* OK, I get it. I sympathize with her, she's been a real hero. Newbie me would have broken up any less determined broody, trying to make sure she was warm and comfy while she was setting. I moved her from the coop (only one nest -- only two hens!) to a separate cage on the porch, to the kitchen when it got cold and rainy, to the porch again, to the basement .... up to a few days before they hatched, and she never wavered. I didn't know I should leave her alone.

And she's being a real good mom to the hatchlings, too. I took her and the peeps back to the back yard when they were a couple days old, and had given up on the other 3 eggs (2 of which I took out of the fridge when she went broody, so I wasn't surprised they didn't hatch). The 2nd night she moved them back into the main coop (Eglu), and the mini-flock is getting along just fine, no drama. Next weekend I will build a bigger coop, and hope all 3 are females and keepers! The Eglu will be way too small for 6!

Thanks a lot for answering!

Regina

 

[asher]

You sound like you're doing great by them.

I absolutely adore seeing broody mamas and babies. It's one of the sweetest things ever.

 

[reginak]

yeah ... they're pretty daggone cute!

 

[Myst4]

How long before a broody starts to lay eggs again if none of the eggs she sat on hatched?