How do I raise chicks from a broody hen

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Countryside : One Thread

From Arizona

How do I properly raise chicks when hatched from a broody hen? Do I need to separate them from other hens? How do I feed them? Can I move the hen and eggs to a new place prior to hatching?

-- Kim Knight (workingpc@starband.net), March 13, 2002

Answers

First question: Why would you remove them from the mother? She is more than capable to raise them, and it would be cheaper for her to do so. You wont have to run a heat light, and that will save your electricity.

Second question: Do you have the room to seperate her from everyone else? Some hens and especially roosters, can harm or even kill the chicks.

Third question: Do you have the facilities to raise them, yourself? They often take up a lot of room, and I insied, the smell can be awful.

Unless I am selling a brood, I always leave them with the mother. It makes my job so much easier.

-- Wendy A (phillips-anteswe@pendleton.usmc.mil), March 13, 2002.


Keep them with the mother, when they are very small, you may take and put them in separate space, but when the chick have feathers, they may stay with the rest of the coop, they learn a lot from the other members of the coop and from mom, your life is going to be very easy. Ralph.

-- Ralph (rroces1@yahoo.com), March 13, 2002.

Hi Kim, Good answers so far. As to moving the hen and eggs prior to hatching, we have never had any luck doing so. Our broody hens pick secluded nesting areas (they free range during the day) and would leave any nest we would relocate. Guess they figure they know best. Since we haven't lost any to predators in 20 some years, they must be making good choices.

-- Scotsirish (notreal@anywhere.net), March 13, 2002.

i've left my banty hens with their chicks every time-i lost a lot to the barn cats, water troughs, until i put them in a small cage until they are feathered, still with mom-have only lost a couple since- 3 banty hens setting hatched 50 chicks over the winter. after they feather i put them in a range shelter and turn mom loose again- more chicks in about 8 weeks.

-- laura (okgoatgal@hotmail.com), March 13, 2002.

I agree with prior answers. Our experience has been that moving the eggs prior to hatching doesn't work. Just wait until they hatch. All the chicks won't hatch at once, so give it a full day, then move the hen and chicks somewhere if you want to. We put a rabbit crock full of water down so the hen can teach the chicks to drink. They would fall into a water bucket and drown. They won't need water for the first day or so but the hen will. The hen will see to it that they eat. Even if all that is fed is layer pellets, the hen breaks them up and drops them on the ground for the chicks. If they are outside, she teaches them right away to find bugs, etc. Please relax and let her do the work.

-- Dianne Wood (woodgoat@pacifier.com), March 13, 2002.


We always do our moving at night, after the sun has been gone for at least a few hrs. Make sure the place where she gets moved to will have her feeling secure and sheltered. If the area is big enough where they range, she'll protect her brood from the other hens, but shouldn't have to be shut into the coop with everyone else. Our roosters never bothered chicks.

-- Nina (Ingardenwithcat@hotmail.com), March 13, 2002.

I agree with all who say leave the chicks with the hen. She'll teach them about survival. I am wondering about one response to your question though. Laura said she's lost chicks to her barn cats. I've never lost one to any barn cats as the old banty hens usually whip the cats when they are young and the cats seem to respect the chickens for life after that. When I throw out kitchen scraps for the chickens the cats will lay their ears back, squint their eyes and eat right along with the chickens (ears and squints are so they don't get pecked in the eyes or ears I'm guessing). I've been raising chickens since I was a kid and have never had a cat yet that didn't learn from the banty's.

-- Mark (mcford@theofficenet.com), March 14, 2002.

Hi Kim

I agree with everyone's answers. But I will tell you of my experience with moving a broody hen and her clutch before the eggs hatch.

Because or our housing arrangement, I have to move the hens out of their nesting box in the hen house and into other more suitable housing. After having to chase them all down the first (and last time!) I have always moved the hen and her eggs apx 7 to 10 days before the eggs hatch. (once I was in a jam for time and they go moved the same day the first egg began peeping.)

To move them is a 2 person job. One holds the hen (usually hubby) while I very carefully pick up the eggs, one at a time, and place them in a box or whatever. Then I scoop up the nesting material, trying to keep it in tack as much as possible, and place it into the nesting area inside the broody hutch. Then I put the eggs back into the nest, take the hen from hubby, comfort her a bit, then place her onto the nest. The moving is done with as much speed as possible.

What I found was the critical point is we block off the little chicken door of the broody hutch so she cannot leave the nesting area. We leave her to total peace and quiet. The nesting area inside of the hutch is dark, so the longest it has ever taken a hen to settle back down on the eggs was maybe 4 minutes. Once she has settled in (we give her a couple of hours alone and undisturbed) we unblocked the little hen door so she can leave the nesting area of the hutch to get to the food and water whenever she needs it.

I have never had a hen not return to brooding her eggs. Last spring we had to move 4 hens to a 4 hen broody hutch, all in one afternoon. Had some fun that day. hehehe But by the time we were done there were 4 contented hens happily sitting on their eggs as they gazed out their little doors.

So - it is doable, but IMO the key is closing the hen in with her nest after the move til she knows all is "safe" and she settles back down again.

-- dottie - in E Shore MD (mother-ducker@webtv.net), March 14, 2002.


mark-just guessing about the barn cats-i've seen them catch other birds, and these chicks were not just hatched-they were a week or two old and beginning to range a few feet from mom. my chicks seem to get independent quickly-i've seen 2 week old chick 5 or more feet from mom when they get involved in eating and don't pay attention. the hens seem to ignore the cats, sleep on the dogs and goats. i leave a few running loose for tick control-the large egg layers are penned-and these are the ones i'm talking about. gotta get all those 45 chicks caught up, they are messing up everything.

-- laura (okgoatgal@hotmail.com), March 14, 2002.

My hens free range during the day and are in and out of the pens to eat/drink/lay eggs. So, I've never had to think about moving them. I close the gate of the pen they choose to set in, so they set and hatch in peace!

I use large covered cat litter boxes for nesting boxes (filled with Coastal hay) that sit on the ground. The hens take the chicks back to the boxes to sleep for the night. Must be cozy in there ~ I've never lost a chick, even with the winter hatches. I don't use heat or lights.

To avoid the new hatchlings from drowning, I put marbles in their waterer for the first week or so.

The only thing I feed my flock ~ no matter what the age ~ is 17% Chick Starter. I mix oyster shell and food grade Diatomaceous Earth into the feed. They free range on Coastal grass pasture and insects. With the hatchlings, just plain Chick Starter is fed. The Chick Starter is fine for all hens.

Hope this helps.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2222@hotmail.com), March 16, 2002.



Moderation questions? read the FAQ