Made my young chicken adopt 6 chicks bc I couldn't break her broodyness .
4 weeks and a few days everything is fine ,now she wants to leave them and almost killed herself .
Are they ok without her with no heat?
They are in a little run outside and have a little dog box to go into at night and they huddle together. They were huddling with her but now she's sitting out on top even though there is room for her.
50' at night.
Heat from light bulbs replaces mom heat. I would have a heat source so if when they get cold they can go to the heat. You generally reduce the temp each week till they are feathered out.
4 weeks, raised with Mom outside?
The chicks will be fine with nothing needed from you. They don't really need mom at that age. Mom is trying to teach them to roost perhaps. And what do you mean, break her broodiness? Either she is done brooding them or close to it.
Thanks, I was hoping that was how it is since they were raised with Mom and been outside for a while. About the broodiness I meant she was going broody and I kept throwing her off her nest and taking all the eggs and more than two weeks into it I still could not break her broodiness so I just bought her six chicks and stuck them under her at night and she was fine like I said for about four weeks acting like they were hers.
This time of year they should be fine. Hen raised chicks get mom's oil to help waterproof them, and learn to use their own oil glands much sooner. They have been learning to regulate their own body temperature since they were a couple days old. At four weeks, they should have some feathers. Most of mine go around six weeks before the hen goes on her next brood of eggs. If it's colder, they might go longer. I have had late fall hatches where the hen brooded them all the way through winter, until she began laying in the spring. If you want eggs, put them in a wire bottom cage so they can't keep their bottom warm, and they will forget about being broody, unless they are from extremely broody breeding.
Thanks! I actually just read about the wire cage thing a few days after I got her the chicks.
It's ok bc I figured I better get more to help with ticks and rural king had some pullet chicks for $1.
I usually let them raise their own but she was getting skinny from hardly eating and only born last fall so I figured I'd better do something.
I ended up taking them in the house overnight bc it got to the mid 40'. But as soon as it stays a little warmer at night I will leave them outside.
They look fully feathered but from what I looked up they are not at this age.
LOL....Yup I suppose the do....or may just just the egg came first...
Looking at the pens at Tysons...makes ya wonder where all the mom's are.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Homesteading Forum
6.1M posts
74.6K members
Since 2002
A forum community dedicated to living sustainably and self sufficiently. Come join the discussion about livestock, farming, gardening, DIY projects, hobbies, recipes, styles, reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more!