Bantam Hatch Spring 2025

[MyTxPatos]

Hi everyone! My bantam hens have hatched! The two hens consist of a mom (Chiquita) & daughter (Salem). Chiquita hatched Salem and her siblings last spring, and she was and is a great mother!! Although we did have nesting boxes available which they’ve laid in the past, both of them found their own little nooks to lay in underneath some bushes. Once hatched we transferred them to a new coop we have built, to use as a temporary brooding area for the mamas (away from the rest of the flock). We have a couple stray cats that are around, so I wanted to ensure that they couldn’t get at the little chicks. One chick did get stuck in their shell for an amount of time that did concern me a bit, so we very carefully helped them out. I was concerned that it may have some issues, but the chick has been doing great since! I have been wondering how long I should keep the chicks and two hens by themselves in the coop before I open it and allow them to roam about the land with the rest of the flock. If anyone has any suggestions or input on it, let me know! Would love to hear. They are only a day and a half old right now so obviously not soon. I have a Khaki Campbell hen that has a clutch (surprisingly) and is due to hatch within the week! She’s a first time mom, and I will post her and her ducklings on the duck forum if anyone is interested ◡̈ So blessed to welcome new life into the world!! Thanks for reading!!

 

[casportpony]

I have been wondering how long I should keep the chicks and two hens by themselves in the coop before I open it and allow them to roam about the land with the rest of the flock.

I usually keep mine separate for a couple of weeks. Do you have crows or ravens? If so, keep an eye on them, 'cause they will eat chicks.

 

[PoppeCountryEggs]

Congrats to your new additions! I only had hen-hatched chicks when I was a child raising chickens (not lucky enough to have a broody hen successfully hatching within the last 20 years of raising chicken in my adult life), and at that time the hen would be out with her clutch within a week of the last chick hatching. My Muscovy ducks hatch every year, they are out there with the ducklings within 2 weeks.

 

[MyTxPatos]

I usually keep mine separate for a couple of weeks. Do you have crows or ravens? If so, keep an eye on them, 'cause they will eat chicks.

We do have crows that sometimes hang out in the trees around us.. hawks seem to be more of a prevalent sighting. Stray cats and opossums seem to be the biggest threat at night, but they haven’t done damage thankfully. My roosters do a great job of warning the flock but I will not be taking any chances!! Thank you for the suggestion, I will be doing two weeks minimum.