Chickens, and things related

[4720 OWNER]

Good attitude on raising!!

I HATE chickens in the barn as adults. They are total mess makers and noisy as well. Previous owner had them in the barn and all the shelves are covered in chicken....stuff. Even after 2 months trying to clean it out. Does not smell that great either. Of course the chickens had to eat something in the barn, the rats and mice loved it. Sowly but surely getting closer to having a shop in there that can be worked in.

 

[dooleysm]

5/8 have hatched over the past 36 hours. In another day or two I guess I'll take the other eggs away from her. She's doing a good job of keeping the chicks warm so far. I'm not sure what, if anything, they're eating so far. They are all still in the nest box, so I'm not sure if I should take them out and put them on the ground or what? Or just ignore them and assume the hen will completely care for them.

 

[Tororider]

If the nest box isn't on the ground I would put it on the ground if that is possible. The chicks will be fine without food for the first 2-3 days, they absorb the egg sack and that sustains them while the other eggs hatch. So if you can't easily move the nest box, wait until you think they have all hatched then move them to the ground in a nest box or dog cage. Then let the hen take care of the rest.

I can't wait until some of the silkies I just hatched are old enough to be mothers, so I can stop worrying about incubators, heat lamps, etc, etc.

Congrats

 

[4720 OWNER]

All right!! What a fun experience. Never had a mom do her thing, but i do remember the first chics that got ordered and put in the swimming pool in the shop. Did not know to give them grit so had to talk to SO mom and could figure out why then looked bad!! I think feathered mom will be able to teach chicken to the kids!

 

[dooleysm]

Yeah, pretty neat, my oldest son is really enjoying it, he's almost 3, the youngest is just a year, so he just wants to jam them in his mouth. One of my beagles had puppies 6 weeks ago, so they boys have gotten a big dose of new things lately. Another human baby is on the way next spring too, so even more fun on the way!

1 of the chicks is yellow with a black spot on the top of it's head, 1 is all black, and the other 3 are kind of yellow/brown/black mottled. If they live it'll be neat to see what they turn into. They'll fit in nicely with the rest of my mutt chickens.

I'm thinking I'll move all of them to ground level and maybe put a 5 gallon bucket on its side on the floor for them to 'live' in. I guess I'll have to put some chick sized waterers and feeders in there too. The ones I have now are too high off the ground for the chicks to reach. I'm gonna draw the line at chick food though, cause I know the rest of the girls will just eat it all up.

 

[dooleysm]

When I got home last night all the chicks were on the floor of the coop with the hen, happily chirping and doing their chick thing. I tried to pick one up and the hen was having no part of that, so I just let them be. I put a waterer on the floor for them and threw a bit of feed on the ground for them. I put a bucket on its side with some wood chips in it for them. When I last looked though the hen was on the opposite side of the coop with the 5 chicks snuggled underneath her. It sure looks like she's gonna do her thing and raise them on her own.

 

[Tororider]

Leave it to "mother" nature. She knows best. How high up was the nest box they were in?

 

[dooleysm]

Two and a half to three feet off the floor of the coop. The coop has about 6" of sawdust for a floor, so it was a soft landing for them.

 

[Tororider]

Tough little suckers. Thats quite a fall if you put it in terms of their size.

 

[dooleysm]

Yeah it's quite a drop, but they're mostly fur and don't weigh much. It's going to be interesting to watch them grow this way vs. in a brooder in the barn.