Re: [Grass-Fed-Eggs] Digest for grass-fed-eggs@googlegroups.com - 1 Message in 1 Topic

[Kristin Hicks]

i have had a 3- some kind of co-parent. a speckled Sussex and 2 little Bantam's. Apparently the little ones are very likely to go broody.

last year the 3 were in a laying box together. There wasn't any room but they managed. i saw them all on the eggs and would just laugh when I went in. i should have taken them out of the box because it was up 2 feet in the air but it never occurred to me what could happen. i walked in one morning and there were the 2 Bantam's on the floor of the coop. One had her wing over the other and i thought the one underneath was dead. i was heartbroken. Bantam's are my favorite as they each seem to have their own personalities and like us people. The one underneath has feathers on her feet and my children named her Runaway because she looks so funny running with all those feathers.

I went over to pick up the dead chicken and to my surprise a little chick poked its head out from under the chickens. I am imagining the chick fell out of the box on to the floor and these 2 decided to care for the chick. At this point I put them all in a dog crate with shavings and fed and watered them there for a week or 2. I forget which one, but one did take the dominant role although both would call the chick when there was food. When they were out foraging both mothers would call the chick and he would come running. At night the 3 would end up in a clump with the chick being on the bottom. Again the chicken on top would spread her wing over both the chick and the other bantam female. As the chick became larger they would sit up on the roost and try to cover him with their wings to keep him warm at night.He was a regular size chicken so out grew them rather fast .How my children knew he was a male i don't know. He was and is male and is now co-leading the chickens with my other one eyed rooster. Both these roosters are amazing with my children and the hens. they both call when they find food for the hens and never have ever attacked me or my children.

( although I had a bantam rooster who I had to give away because he attacked me and the kids....funny how he was fine where i sent him. He never attacked anyone there so they kept him alive because he was exquisitely beautiful)
The Speckled Sussex did hatch a few chicks from eggs and parented them alone as the Bantams were totally occupied with their own little chick.

Kristin

On Sun, May 6, 2012 at 10:10 PM, <grass-f...@googlegroups.com> wrote:

  Today's Topic Summary

Group: http://groups.google.com/group/grass-fed-eggs/topics

• fencing and coop ideas [1 Update]

 fencing and coop ideas

Kelly Phillipson <kellyph...@gmail.com> May 05 10:31PM -0700  

Oh good, so we could have one :) I hope that they can co-parent together.
Made me chuckle!
 


 

      

[Kelly Phillipson]

That is such a beautiful story!!  I feel like it might be harder than I anticipated to slaughter the birds (ever) since they are getting to have such personalities.  Not only for me, but for my toddlers because they are hand-feeding dandelion greens to the chicks almost daily.  I think our core 12 here might just have to stay with us and then we can raise some meat birds that we won't feel as attached to.  There is one fluffly Buff that is growing bigger and she(he?) is definitely the alpha in their little brooder box.  I wonder if she's going to be a brooding hen?  That is interesting about your roosters; wonder if the one who is currently co-leading is gentler b/c he was raised by two females!!
Kelly

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