Fluster Cluck Acres
Crowing
How traumatic is for a mama hen to remove her only baby? This is my first time with a broody hen/hatching eggs, and mama hen’s first go round, too. She’s a 9 month old Wyandotte.
Mama has a 1 week old chick. This morning I found the chick under mom tangled in her feathers. I think baby chick poop had gotten in mom’s wings and sealed some feathers together. By the time I got baby out, she was limp and gasping for air. I brought her indoors to warm up. Mama didn’t know since the chick wasn’t peeping. But now chick is up and active. Should I return it?
I have 4 other younger chicks that hatched later and mama rejected (she’d let the chicks under her but pecked them violently when they came out). We lost one and one is injured but okay. Mama’s chick has peck marks on her neck. This could be from other chickens (they all got a little feisty with one another when locked in the coop during extreme cold — I separated mom and baby but now they’re back with the flock). But I also worry it might be from mama (her pecked feathers are in the exact same spot my other chick was injured).
Here’s the other reason I’m contemplating keeping this chick with the others. I don’t know what mamas behavior is supposed to be like, but to me she is still acting broody. In the week since she’s had this chick, she’s left the coop only once. She mostly lays down on the chick, and is doing the once a day activity of go get food, water, have giant stinky poop, and then lay back down with chick. When I offer the chick water, she drinks greedily, and that concerns me. I know she’s eating because I have food right in the “nest” with mama, but I can’t keep the water that close.
I’m afraid the tangled feathers might be because mama isn’t taking the chick out and it is probably pooping underneath her. Is this normal?
I’m heading out to the coop now to see what mama is up to. Chick (Noel) seems perfectly at home in the brooder with the others. As soon as the cold snap passes, we’ll move the brooder outside so mama and baby will be able to see each other again in a few days if I keep her in.
Update: Chick has been indoors for about 35-45 minutes and just started calling for mom (it’s under the brooder and with the other chicks). Mom was happily out with the rest of the flock acting like a normal chicken for the first time in 4 weeks! But she did follow me in the coop and look for her chick a little, and she’s still making those adorable (now sort of heartbreaking) sounds when she eats to call the chick over). She did return to ranging with the flock and seems content. And now she’s blissfully dust bathing.
Mama has a 1 week old chick. This morning I found the chick under mom tangled in her feathers. I think baby chick poop had gotten in mom’s wings and sealed some feathers together. By the time I got baby out, she was limp and gasping for air. I brought her indoors to warm up. Mama didn’t know since the chick wasn’t peeping. But now chick is up and active. Should I return it?
I have 4 other younger chicks that hatched later and mama rejected (she’d let the chicks under her but pecked them violently when they came out). We lost one and one is injured but okay. Mama’s chick has peck marks on her neck. This could be from other chickens (they all got a little feisty with one another when locked in the coop during extreme cold — I separated mom and baby but now they’re back with the flock). But I also worry it might be from mama (her pecked feathers are in the exact same spot my other chick was injured).
Here’s the other reason I’m contemplating keeping this chick with the others. I don’t know what mamas behavior is supposed to be like, but to me she is still acting broody. In the week since she’s had this chick, she’s left the coop only once. She mostly lays down on the chick, and is doing the once a day activity of go get food, water, have giant stinky poop, and then lay back down with chick. When I offer the chick water, she drinks greedily, and that concerns me. I know she’s eating because I have food right in the “nest” with mama, but I can’t keep the water that close.
I’m afraid the tangled feathers might be because mama isn’t taking the chick out and it is probably pooping underneath her. Is this normal?
I’m heading out to the coop now to see what mama is up to. Chick (Noel) seems perfectly at home in the brooder with the others. As soon as the cold snap passes, we’ll move the brooder outside so mama and baby will be able to see each other again in a few days if I keep her in.
Update: Chick has been indoors for about 35-45 minutes and just started calling for mom (it’s under the brooder and with the other chicks). Mom was happily out with the rest of the flock acting like a normal chicken for the first time in 4 weeks! But she did follow me in the coop and look for her chick a little, and she’s still making those adorable (now sort of heartbreaking) sounds when she eats to call the chick over). She did return to ranging with the flock and seems content. And now she’s blissfully dust bathing.
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