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46K views 993 replies 11 participants last post by  robin416 
#1 ·
My stray chicken came home with nine chicks. I put them all in a coop but they stay in the run all the time.
I saw poop on one of the chicks but when I went inside the hen wouldn’t allow me near the chicks. She began flapping her wings & pecking at me.
Will they be ok in the run & will she clean the poop off the chick ?
 
#5 ·
She might be an American Game. A good side shot of her would help. It looks like she has slate colored feet which could point to the game bird.

Games are also ferociously protective of their chicks.

It depends on how much has collected. It sounds like it drew your attention is probably bad enough to have to deal with it. A warm water rinse can help loosen it so you can remove it completely.
 
#103 ·
View attachment 34152 What is a game bird ? I'm sorry I don't know a thing about chi
She could be a Black Copper Marans or cross. Your hen's comb and wattles are smaller so maybe that indicates she is a cross. They have slate or pink legs which may or may not have feathers. The hens are mostly black with a little copper on the hackles. The amount of copper they have seems variable from the pictures I've seen. If she is, they lay a very dark brown egg that is supposed to be the best egg. Or she could be something else!
 
#7 ·
It's just another breed of chicken. They can be a challenge when trying to introduce a new bird to the flock. As in, not going to happen challenging.

She's a very pretty bird. I wonder who lost her because she's got a nice body type and overall pleasant to look at. She's not one that someone would just turn out.

But everyone here knows I'm the worst when it comes to IDing anything that isn't a Silkie so someone might shoot the game bird idea down.
 
#11 ·
It's just another breed of chicken. They can be a challenge when trying to introduce a new bird to the flock. As in, not going to happen challenging.

She's a very pretty bird. I wonder who lost her because she's got a nice body type and overall pleasant to look at. She's not one that someone would just turn out.

But everyone here knows I'm the worst when it comes to IDing anything that isn't a Silkie so someone might shoot the game bird idea down.
The
It's just another breed of chicken. They can be a challenge when trying to introduce a new bird to the flock. As in, not going to happen challenging.

She's a very pretty bird. I wonder who lost her because she's got a nice body type and overall pleasant to look at. She's not one that someone would just turn out.

But everyone here knows I'm the worst when it comes to IDing anything that isn't a Silkie so someone might shoot the game bird idea down.
vegetable market across the road is very busy. I wonder if someone stopped with a load of chickens & somehow she got out & came here. 1 neighbor has chickens but wasn't hers.
 
#10 ·
I bought the coop/run just for her & chicks. Not sure where she came from. Showed up one day & stayed until she would leave for days then show up again now & then. I suspect she was sitting on eggs. I about died when she came home with those 9 chicks lol. I have a friend who is going to take them all but wanted to watch chicks grow for a while.
 
#12 ·
Wait, you can't give all the peeps away and just keep her. She needs her own kind to be happy. Chickens are very flock oriented. If she hadn't had a nest she was on she would have eventually made it to your neighbor who has chickens.

Fresh food and water and they should be good to go. Once you can get past the "am I doing everything right?" phase they are pretty easy keepers.
 
#14 ·
OK, I thought all the chicks were going to a new home but you were keeping Mom. Your friend is going to get a really good looking hen. If they have one of the same breed they could breed some nice babies from her and the right rooster.

That's sad. I wish you could keep them. Chickens are kind of like watching fish in an aquarium. They can be very relaxing.
 
#15 ·
I watch them all the time. They are very funny. She will run & boy those chicks run too. She kinda bows her head so I wonder if she’s teaching them something. I go out & “talk” to her several times a day hoping she will get used to me but hasn’t so far. Ty. I think she is very pretty & the splash of rust color makes her even prettier. I will miss them when they go but just can’t keep them. It is sad.
 
#16 ·
Well, you know where they're going to be.

Yes, the hen does teach them stuff. Usually they make a sound to alert babies there's something tasty right there and to come get it.

As long as her peeps are so young she's only interested in protecting her young. That changes as they become more independent. I've got Guineas, talk about protective Mommas. Do not go out without long sleeves and pants on if you have to do anything that Momma perceives as a threat to her little ones. Almost everything is a threat in the early days. Even me. And she knows me.
 
#17 ·
It’s amazing that the closest neighbor is about 1/2 mile away or better & my hen had chicks lol.
I managed to catch the pasty chick this morning & cleaned off the poop. Idk who was shaking more, chick or myself. I grabbed it up & momma hen was not happy... she flew at me but I already had chick in hand.... she will never trust me again !!
Is there anything I need to do for the chick now ? Started putting some grit out for them a couple days ago. Will that take care of poop getting stuck ?
 
#19 ·
It was exciting to hold the chick. It cheeped the whole time & what a wiggly little thing. But adorable !
I think I’ll keep them until mid to late fall. I want to watch the chicks grow some before I let them leave. I don’t want cold weather before the go because I don’t think the coop is going to be adequate for them. I saw the hen go up to check out the coop yesterday but the chicks must be too small to climb the ladder yet. Will they eventually go in the coop ?
 
#20 ·
If she does, they will try. But that ramp isn't very baby friendly.

Had I not gone through this for a keet that's struggling I probably wouldn't have recognized the challenge. My steps were a little closer spaced than yours but one still couldn't make it to the top. I put non skid in between the steps, that's all it took. Once keet had traction it could roost with the others.

Non skid is kind of scary though too because toes can get caught in the little holes so I stapled the heck out of it so there were no loose areas and it laid flat and tight against the ramp.
 
#22 ·
Nope. Because of its roughness it can cause damage to all of the chickens' foot pads. It causes what is known as bumble foot, a staph infection that gets into the bottom of the feet from the skin being broken.

Want to talk about a pain in the behind dealing with it, that's one of them.

I didn't want to use the non skid because of the little holes but for what I had here it was the safest option.
 
#27 ·
Omg hen was in the coop but left 1 peep in the run. Poor little baby was cheeping continuously. I picked it up & put it in the coop with the others. All quiet now. idk if I can do this , I felt so badly for the chick. What woulda happened to it if it never got in the coop with momma hen ?
 
#28 ·
It would have returned to where it usually slept once it wore itself out.

I've had to deal with this just recently with a guinea keet. I couldn't stand for it not to be able to sleep with the others. So, I understand how it bothered you.

You've probably got an idea now when she decides it's bedtime. Check on them about a half hour after that time to see if peep made it.
 
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