Sunday, September 2, 2018

Mother hen

Well, of the two broody hens who hatched out eggs, resulting in an unusual co-parenting arrangement with the resulting 13 chicks, one hen has flown the coop and abandoned all pretense of being a mother. This would be the Jersey Giant hen, who now blends in so well with the rest of the flock that I can't find her to chastise her.


Not that it matters to the chicks. They have happily grouped around the Buff Orpington hen, who continues to act motherly but now has an enormous brood to care for.




But she's done a good job. She hasn't lost a single chick. It's always funny to watch the whole brood try to cram under her feathers.



Like a good mother, she calls them over whenever it's lunch time.



The babies are approaching what we call the "velociraptor" stage, gangling awkward creatures who run with their necks stretched straight out, flapping as they go.





Yep, makes for a happy barnyard.

5 comments:

  1. I love it.. I haven't had chickens in a bunch of years and miss having them, but I enjoy your chickens very much. Thank you.

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  2. It's one of my favorite parts of having a hobby farm! Just can't help myself---when a hen goes broody, I give her a couple of eggs and let her enjoy motherhood.....!

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  3. Most of our chickens are buff's. They are just the sweetest things and love to go broody.

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  4. Buff Orpingtons make the best moms! We had a broody one so we bought some fertalized eggs from a friend. She's now a mama!

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