Broodies on the Homestead

One of my juvenile pullets went to bed with the two mamas and their two babies and the next morning they started attacking her. She has a bad wound on her head and now has to keep lively around the other chickens they were all attacking her. I locked her up but DS let her out but she's staying out of reach of them now. I'm beginning to think that NH's aren't too smart. Every night since I've sent them to the main coop at night I have to pick them up and place them in the coop. This is the 1st time I've had to do this with any chickens. Usually by the 2nd or 3rd day they figured it out.
 
My NH's will NOT sleep in the coop. They want to roost outside, pouring rain and all. They won't lay eggs in the coop, they lay in the goats' hay. They are not my favorites.
 
Put two broodies in the maternity ward tonight...not to sit, but to cool off and get a change of attitude. Will be placing the rooster in there with them to give my BA hens a break...they are hatchery stock, so have horrible feathering, which leaves them with feather damage on their backs, no matter how many other hens there are to mate with.

That's been needed for some time, just now getting around to it. I also need to put up the extra roost pole in the coop so the juveniles will have a place to roost that is distant from dominant hens. Got a few cockerels that want to roost in the nest boxes or on top of them. If they don't cool it, they too will go in the maternity ward.

I don't like gathering poopy eggs. o_O Will refresh the hay in the nest boxes here in a few days after that issue is resolved.
 
I love my little NH's because they are so sweet but I'm thinking they aren't too smart.
 
Whoa... Woke up to 5 new chicks!! Go mama! She's a keeper. Funny, she's the one we got for free because our friends were culling her and I thought she was too pretty to eat, lol. She is low in the pecking order but a fierce broody. Love her!
 
Ah! There's actually 6 of them! I forgot to bring my phone, but could have gotten a great picture. Two of them are mostly black with yellowish splotches all over. So cute!!!
 
Woohoo! Congrats on the chicks!

Few weeks back I took about 15 eggs out from under a broody because there were three hens fighting over the nest and breaking eggs. And, because every time I've had baby chicks hatch outside something gets almost every one of them. I'm thinking it's rats...ugh. Gracie is a really good ratter - but Gracie just likes to catch any little critter that moves very fast. Rats move fast - but so do baby chicks....sigh. So, I took those eggs and put 'em in the incubator and so far 14 of the 15 have hatched. I was soooo NOT expecting that, lol! Now I have a buncha chicks that I guess I'll havta take care of. I do have chicken tractor that I might drag outta the corner of the yard and see if I can slip a broody in there one night and convince her that she hatched a big ol' clutch of chicks. :hu Maybe...
 
Well my musical chair one....certain he's a roo! .... believes I AM his mom. I put my hand in his inside box, he steps on it, we go outside & he runs right along with me as I walk around. I stop, he runs over -- trying to be airborne now -- time to go in & he comes when I call, into my hand. I HATE he will be a roo, as a tame hen I would keep. Sorry, pal. :hide

The 11 from early May hatchings are great! It appears that 9 are pullets :celebrate One definitely a roo & one ?? unsure. Thrilled with the ratio. Too soon to tell about the other 11 out there, not able to keep them still long enough but "appears" 8 are likely pullets. CAN NOT believe the good fortune from these 2 roos with fertility and female results. Now I have enough replacement pullets. YEP -- keeper roos.

The plus -- they are non aggressive, easy to handle. Nice.

30 out of 36 is a great hatch!!!! Congrats.
 
That is awesome! I remember when I used to have gamebirds I got a very high ratio of females. I thought it was normal but now I'm thinking just good luck.
 
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