Part 0800.0005

[jon888]

It has now been 5 weeks since florence hatched out 6 polish chicks and is still doing a fantastic job of looking after them. The past few days she has started to crouch again and when putting them to bed tonight i found an egg in the house. I expected her to lay again but thought it would be after she had decided she'd had enough of the chicks and wanted to return to the others. Is this normal? Is it signs that she's ready to return to the others? She still has them tucked under her at night even if they do have to take it in turns and i let them out to free range at the weekend and they didn't leave her side and she was taking them to the compost heap for a good scratch.

 

Should i be trying to give her layers now she is laying? She has been on crumb for the past week and will be going on to growers next weekend when the chicks are 6 weeks.

[Christian]

I would put her back on layers pellets. If she is laying again, then she will need the nutrients from the pellets.

 

Placing the feeder slightly higher will stop the chicks eating the pellets.

[craftyhunnypie]

You'll find that mother hen might break up bits of her pellets in her beak & feed to the chicks. It won't be enough to cause any harm - it's just mother hens instinct.

 

Emma.x

[jon888]

Cheers. I'll try and find some way of supplying her with layers as well. the chicks are quite flighty so may have to suspend it from the roof to stop them perching. Also been told by the farm that i get my birds off to not eat the eggs as the chick crumb has ACS in it which isnt suitable for humans.