Feeding advice for bantams (one broody, one moulting)

[Miriam Chook Lady]

Our dear hen ‘Chickpea’ has just gone broody and we would so love for her to sit on some fertile eggs and then raise her own chicks. We have never done this before however!

I am wondering how many eggs a bantam Orpington can sit on (6?) and then raise?

What sized broody house would be ideal for her?

Would an Eglu Go (on ground level not on a stand) be a suitable size and set up? I would have chicken fencing around it for a run.

 

[Luvachicken]

Awww, Chickpea is beautiful.

I have only ever had chicks from about 5 weeks old so unfortunately know nothing about raising chicks with a broody.

@mullethunter has though and might be able to give you some advice, although now I come to think of it, she has done quite a few in an incubator and now I'm not sure if she has done a broody.

That said, there will definitely be someone on here that can help you. 

[mullethunter]

Yes she will definitely be able to cover at least 6 bantam eggs. If I remember correctly I think my Wyandotte bantam covered 8 but 6 is a good number.

A Go would be a good size - but you’ll need to make sure the gaps between the roosting bars are filled when any chicks hatch. I just use lots and lots of wood chip to make sure the floor is reasonably flat and non-slip.

Normal chicken fencing maybe a bit risky for chicks. Although they’ll stay with Chickpea they’ll be so small they could easily get out through a regular fence and get lost.

Also - and I don’t mean to sound really negative - this isn’t the best time of year to be hatching (especially for your first time) - it’s going to be mid October now by the time any chicks hatch when the weather is getting much colder and wetter   with shorter days so the chicks won’t have so many daylight hours to feed up and so won’t grow so quickly. You maybe better off waiting until spring. (Ignore that last paragraph if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere!)

[Mama Litts]

I have a bantam cochin that looks just like Sweetpea!  I tried to use our Go at ground level for her broodie coop, but she wouldn’t have it.  She insisted on brooding in her current coop.  However, I have, since that time, used my Go, at ground level, as a broodie coop for a standard size hen and it worked great.  Just be sure that you put it on a secure underpinning, like 2x4s or a piece of thick plywood, to keep it relatively level and to make sure nothing can come at it from burrowing underneath (a problem where I live).  While I’ve never had a “break in”, the sounds of those animals has been very disturbing to my girls in the past.

I take out the roost floor and just use the underflooring, filling the entire area with your preferred litter (I use hemp). This way, its easier when you move her to the coop to get her nesting spot set up in the back, where you can easily access it for cleaning.

[mullethunter]

On 9/16/2021 at 2:26 PM, Mama Litts said:

take out the roost floor and just use the underflooring, filling the entire area with your preferred litter (I use hemp).

I’ve done this too but found it a bit flimsy - your suggestion of an additional solid base is a good way to overcome that.