A Broody Hen Season: Part 9 FAQs - Chick Behaviours and Multiple Broods

[@lindapeterson3483]

I have a one year old Sussex who laid a clutch of eggs out in the brush in June, and being concerned for her safety, I moved her and her eggs into a large dog crate in the coop. She was very upset at the move and refused to sit on her eggs again so, I moved them into the incubator and hatched them 3 weeks ago. I think that no sooner did she abandon her eggs, she started laying another clutch out in the brush. She’s well hidden so I decided to leave her alone. She’s been on the eggs a week now and once while she was getting something to eat, I counted the eggs and it looks like she has about 18 again. I was very surprised that she set so quickly after abandoning her last clutch. If all goes well, I’ll have another dozen and a half chicks in a couple of weeks. 🤦‍♀️ Thank you so much for doing this series. It has been so informative and has helped me immensely as a new chicken mama, or is it grandma? 😂

[@EnglishCountryLife]

You are very welcome - good luck with the hatch!

[@raincoast9010]

Cinnamon, what a great name for a Buff !

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Thank you - she was a sweetie 🙂

[@inmyfreetyme]

Very informative video. Thank U 4 that.

[@EnglishCountryLife]

That's so kind of you!. You're very welcome

[@francineclave2207]

Our Buff just hatched her first chicks yesterday. This series has been very helpful!

[@EnglishCountryLife]

We're so please for you. Glad it helped

[@ericchristiansen7246]

I love watching our chickens, I love that dinosaurs are still with us.

[@EnglishCountryLife]

They pretty much are!

[@hedgecomber]

Another great episode guys 👌

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Thanks Janie

[@michaelofmarble2094]

I have been watching your channel for months. :) and love it. I have a question about you lawn area, it looks fantastic. I can't spot any of the common lawn weeds. For example we moved into our 2 acre home 16 years ago, and the grass is a mix of every weed and grass known to man. How did you get you chicken yard to look so good? 2nd question: This is the 1st year we have had Buff Orpington chicks. Almost everyone I talk with, as well as a few youtubers, say they have had problems with dyeing and will not get them again. I always raised Barred Rocks or Wyandotte. I absolutely love the Buff Orpington looks and this year I found some in the our farm store. Is there anything I need to do different with them? I have tried to find out all I can, and I'm still learning. Thank you, and have the big burly man do more videos too. :-)

[@EnglishCountryLife]

The 1st question is easy. The chickens take care of all of the weeds in their field. They love daisies and dandelions so they never grow there which is the same for most weeds. To them a weed is a food treat! The 2nd question I'm a bit surprised at the feedback you've had. It hasn't been our experience at all. Our Orpingtons have the same mortality rates as the other breeds we hatch. It's more dependent on the quality of breeding. This year we have had an issue with a clutch of eggs that we bought in. This was a clutch we were hatching to select a new breeding cockerel. Genetically they are very weak with high mortality rates so we won't be selecting a breeding cockerel from that clutch! Here in the UK in general the genetics for Orpingtons are very strong so this was an unusual problem. I understand that the breed has been diluted in other countries so may not be as true to the breed standard and this may explain why the genetics are not as strong? Possibly? BTW Hugh laughed at the big burly description!!!! Love it!

[@michaelofmarble2094]

@@EnglishCountryLife I was thinking the same thing about Orpingtons being diluted here in the states. It is not a common breed in our area. I will look for a breeder, so next year maybe I'll try a breeding program of my own. I only have a small flock of 7 Buffs and 5 Rocks at 11 weeks old. At this point it looks like I'll end up with 3 Buff hens, and 1 maybe 2 Rock hens, still hard to tell. I am looking at tail angle, body, and feet size to guess at this point. I will only keep one Buff roster. Thank you for answering my questions. I'll post updates on my hens when I can tell for sure how many I have. Hugh is bigger then I, so he is burlier. :-) Also I could never push that roller around.

[@Damselfly54315]

I just got Buff Orpingtons 3 weeks ago, the order was for 20, 5 cockrells and 15 females...withing 48 hrs 5 died, it was SO cold when they shipped, then a week later one died of pasty butt, MY FAULT,how I missed that one I dont know...but I have 14 beautiful Buff Orpingtons thriving...I see them doing all the things in the video...they are here in the USA, and seem very true to form to me...BUT my first experience with them...

[@bgtrev]

More good information, good enjoyable series, thanks.

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Thanks Trev 🙂

[@wsudance85]

What are some health issues we should be aware of when raising baby chicks by hand?

[@Silverstreamhomecrafts]

Spradle leg, coccidiosis and pasty butt are all more likely when hand rearing chicks. Spradle leg is normally caused by slippy incubator floors and can be prevented by putting a grippy mat in a few days before hatch (day 18) sometimes they get it anyway and bizarrely you can fix it by putting the affected chick in a mug for 10 mins at a time as trying to stand in it strengthens up their legs. Coccidiosis is an infection, keep everything sterile clean and if affected they'll need amprollium/coxoid treatment or you can get chick crumb with a preventive medicine in it for that (do not give to ducklings). Pasty butt is where their vent gets pasted over, best prevented by giving them abit of chopped up grass when they're a few days old, don't know why this works, possibly starts up their stomach microbiome

[@EnglishCountryLife]

The big one is coccidiosis which is spread by the chicks eating from bare soil where infected faeces have dropped. Commercial hatcheries can vaccinate so check if this is the case, or feed medicated chick crumb. Either way I carry out poop picks in the field and coops daily just in case. A common condition is pasty butt which affects all chicks but is less prevalent with broody hens as they will assist the chicks in cleaning up their backsides. It happens when some poop gets caught on their feathers under the vent and then the next poop catches and so on until the vent can become covered. At this point the chick will die unless the vent is cleared. The chick can be carefully cleaned in lukewarm water by gently removing the poop with a cotton bud. This must be gentle as the chick's skin is very delicate. Feeding a properly balances chick crumb and keeping the coop clean with a proper temperature will help reduce the amount of pasty butt. The first 7 days are the most crucial and during this time it's best to be vigilante looking out for any issues. Cleanliness of feeders, drinkers and bedding is key. I hope that helps.

[@mohdmansoor1455]

when are you going part 10

[@EnglishCountryLife]

When Cinnamon leaves the chicks 🙂

[@mohdmansoor1455]

i like part9

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Thank you

[@creativemakes8219]

I’ll be coming back to this series when I get my chickens next year 👍. What I wanna know is........when are you doing this blackberry port 😋😁

[@EnglishCountryLife]

The video is being filmed as we speak!

[@creativemakes8219]

Excellent 🤗

[@EnglishCountryLife]

@@creativemakes8219 Fermentation well underway 😉. Hugh

[@thosewhobelieve122]

You posted this video just in time Fiona!My broody hen hatched 8 chicks in May and raised them until 7 weeks old. We’ve been getting those big, wonderful eggs from her again for the last 3 weeks, and she’s gone broody again! We’re getting a lot of 90F+ degree (32C) days lately. I need eggs more than chicks at this point! If she goes broody and stops laying, if I break her broodiness, will she resume laying shortly? Will she continue going broody until it cools down (in October where I live)?

[@EnglishCountryLife]

What SHOULD happen is that when you break her the hormones should subside and she'll come back on to lay. Of course every chicken is different and if the breaking hasn't stopped the flood of hormones she might brood again never coming back on to lay or if the weather stays very hot she might brood again a short time after coming back on to lay. Unfortunately chickens never read the rule book but in general she should come back onto lay a short time after breaking her brood.

[@thosewhobelieve122]

@@EnglishCountryLife Thank you for your response. Yes, they are such unpredictable creatures. Well, I I sprung into action and put her into a broody cage this morning. Crossing my fingers it works!

[@oldtinshedquilting417]

Hi Fiona, I don't wish to pre-empt any planned videos, but I have always found the weaning process to be quite distressing. Depending on the hen this can happen very early, leaving quite young chicks motherless and homeless. How do you manage the weaning process and what strategies do you employ if hens wean chicks too early? Thanks!

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Hi, we find that generally once chicks have developed proper feathers at 4 to 6 weeks they are fine to be left if the weather is warm. If chicks are left too early then we would use a brooder plate to hand rear them if we cannot ”foster” the chicks with another hen, but thankfully with our strain of Buff Orpingtons, the mothering impulse is very strong so that almost never happens

[@khurramaslam3565]

Do you have hatching eggs available?

[@EnglishCountryLife]

I'm sorry but we don't have any at the moment. We sell exclusively within the UK as air travel for eggs has a high risk of killing them due to the temperatures in the cargo hold and the negative air pressure.

[@khurramaslam3565]

@@EnglishCountryLife I am in UK

[@EnglishCountryLife]

@@khurramaslam3565 Hi Khurram, when our new stud cockerel is ready we will be happy to supply some via our website www.Englishcountrylife.com. We normally sell hatching eggs from December to April

[@TheCustomer]

When are you guys going to make videos about nubuck or suede leather care? :-) also white leather, although I know you dont use it😁

[@EnglishCountryLife]

We'll add it to our list. Thanks for the suggestions

[@Alex-gn6ke]

My hens don’t seem to want to spend there nights in the nesting box, they would much rather sleep on top of or under the other in a corner of their inside coop. Is this something all chickens do? They’re about 24 weeks.

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Some chickens like to sleep while perching (which is true of most) but if they prefer to sleep sitting down we've found that most prefer to sleep in a communal way so being on their own in a nest box isn't normally their choice. Of course chickens don't read the textbooks so we do have one that insists on being in the nestbox on her own.......

[@JudiOsburn]

We don’t have a rooster but we have a buff Orpington who is broody. She is setting on for five eggs all day. Can’t seem to get her off. And now I put them to bed at night and she still setting in the same laying box panting her head off. What do we do to help

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Hi Judi, Orpingtons are naturally broody birds. Are you wanting her to hatch eggs? I understand that you don't have a cockerel but lots of people buy in fertilised eggs.

[@JudiOsburn]

No we don’t want her to be broody. So do I keep lifting her off as many times as I can reach in there and lift her off?

[@EnglishCountryLife]

@@JudiOsburn There are several possibilities. You could give her some sacrificial eggs, let her sit on them for two or three days then take them away. Or shut her out of the coop for a few hours at a time. Some people shut a broody in a raised cage with food and water for a couple of days, they believe cool air under the broody breaks broody behaviour, but its not something we've ever done

[@JudiOsburn]

@@EnglishCountryLife I’ve lifted her off three times today held her a while, Showed her the big bowl of chock chook that I make every day And she hasn’t been back up today so I keep checking on her but I took all the eggs out of the coop

[@EnglishCountryLife]

@@JudiOsburn Keep at it. Orpingtons are determined to brood though, it's in their DNA

[@Damselfly54315]

Do ALL the chicks chest bump?

[@EnglishCountryLife]

It's most common in chicks rather than mature birds. Both sexes do it.

[@Damselfly54315]

@@EnglishCountryLife Thank you, grateful for the response😊

[@mohdmansoor1455]

you are so nice

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Thank you

[@JasonLZahn]

I have always loved chickens and their behavior has always fascinated me. I think they get a bad rap as either being extremely stupid or mean when really they are anything but!

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Absolutely right. They are creatures of instinct but they recognise people & objects, learn behaviours & responses.

[@チャボ61]

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