Letting Momma Do It

Oh :) That's all I have to say to start out. I know there should be more... but there is just no words. 

Ya see, ever since I have been hatching chickens, which has been a long time, I have wanted to have my hens hatch them. I have really tried at it this year. I separated the hen (a Silkie I might add) gave her some golf balls to see if she would hatch them, and no progress was made. At all. I finally gave up my attempt of having momma hens and getting so busy, forgot all about the idea. 

One day I went out there and it seemed like so many eggs appeared out of nowhere and I had 2 hens setting on them. I left the hens in the chicken house with the rest of the flock then 2 weeks later found 2 more hens setting. I was ecstatic and having a nervous break down. Well that may be a bit dramatic, but I had no clue what to do! Being me, I googled it. And I also read... a lot. 

I eventually separated 2 of my hens. The ones that were due to hatch in the next few days. The other 2 hens had biddies sooner than expected and I had to make a place for them too. They are very make shift/temporary places. 

Long story short, I learned more than ever imagined. I realized I needed better cages. I had a hen that only hatched one baby and later the baby died. Now I have another hen setting on 15 eggs. It really is a different experience when momma hen does it. It takes a lot less attention and you can tell they mature faster when raised by a hen. 

Anna .V.