Great job! Nothing feels as good as success!
They--and you--- have a great start!
Now ----mama cannot actually protect a bunch of baby chicks moving around from the rest of the flock very long. She'll just keep try to keep the others out of the house, but they'll get in anyway, and as the chicks grow they will want to range further away from her. Trouble coming.
I strongly suggest you go buy or make a rabbit cage, put it together and put it inside the chicken house. They can stay in there full time for quite a while. Try to set it up on something as the other chickens will roost on top of it at night and there'll be droppings all over everybody in the cage. Or put a board on top. Yeah, chickens are messy.
And don't use too many clips on the cage. You might want to take it apart later. Fold it flat to store, use it again next year. My husband did one, guess he thought I was keeping lions in it. About 4 down each side will work. And check what it has for a latch. A snap clip with a little thumb spring thing is more solid that most of them. Get brass, costs more but doesn't rust.
Really, I'm not exaggerating. They're chickens. Cute, funny, pretty, useful, also dumb, persistent and vicious. They WILL kill the babies and you will feel awful. Be a real chicken keeper and be smarter than they are!
Sending encouragement!
Diane S.
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, May 31, 2013 2:05 PM
Subject: Re: [CHICKENS-101] Re: chick question
I did "box" the babies down from the flying-loft (with mama growling behind me all the way!) I had made a small, movable rat-wire pen, with a large dog-crate for cover, and installed them in that, on the lawn. The other hens discovered them and lurked around, believing that the food in *there* had to be superior. Mama warned them off in no uncertain terms, from her side of the wire.
The next evening we had some severe thunderstorms--so I picked up the crate (with family inside for the night) and set it inside the coop overnight. Next morning, once the others had gone out, I opened the crate. Mama took FULL control of the coop--fortunately most of the others had already laid, because she wouldn't let anyone back in until afternoon! So it appears the chicks are safe. Today, I watched while 3 of the other hens crept respectfully back in along the wall to get to the nest-boxes today--Mama is quite formidable...
If there had still been the full complement of hens, I probably would have kept the chicks and mother in the separate pen, troublesome as it was. I guess the only thing I really have to worry about is the return of whatever predator struck last week--but I suspect whatever it was could have got into the little pen and dog crate if it really wanted to, anyway.
Fingers crossed...
Rhonda
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