The Momma Hen

The first broody hen we had setting on eggs hatched out 4 chicks.  We do have another broody hen that is setting on 7 eggs.  Just yesterday, we saw that she hatched out 4 chicks.  Evidently 5 hatched out originally but 1 died and two eggs must have been not fertilized as nothing hatched.  We'll wait until those chicks are a few days old before moving them.

Since the meat birds are in the freezer, our chicken tractor has vacancy.  It's a perfect place to move the first momma hen and her four chicks.  It is interesting to watch her instinctively teach her little biddies to scratch to look for bugs, worms and seeds.  They are all very active.  We did have to put some guards so that the chicks couldn't get out.  Two had gotten out by squeezing under the bottom the other day.  Had Ginger, our cat, seen them, well, it would have been disastrous for the two chicks.  For Ginger, it would have been a great day for a two piece chicken dinner.

The momma hen is a good mother.  If I walk in the tractor, she perks up, fluffs out her feathers and makes ominous, threatening noises.  Her little chicks huddle nearby and she provides protection like any good momma would.

I watched her as she methodically scratched at the grass.  Then she pecked and pointed with her beak.  She had unearthed a beetle and the little chick that was paying attention scored a nice meal.  The is teaching them life lessons that they'll need to survive.  These chicks likely aren't even hers.  She was broody and we just grabbed a few eggs and put them under her.  She sat on them for 21 days, hatched them out and now cares for them as if they were her own.

Yesterday, we had driving wind and rain that came through in the late afternoon.  I went out and held the chicken tractor down.  Once the winds subsided, I went back inside.  A little later I thought of the chicks.  Oh no!  If they get wet, they'll get hypothermia and die!  I went out to check on them and all were just fine.  The momma hen covered them with her wings.  She was soaking wet, but her little chicks were warm and dry beneath her, safe from the storm.

It would be nice if the little chicks were all pullets, but normally about 50% are pullets and 50% are cockerels.  We will probably get 2 little hens out of this batch to replace those that were eaten by minks.  For the roosters, well, they'll end up in a pot for supper in about 6 months.

In a few days we'll move the other broody hen with her four little chicks into the chicken tractor.  We'll raise the little ones in the tractor until around 20-24 weeks old.  That's when they'll lay their first eggs and we will move them out to the barnyard in the general population.  By then the momma hens will have taught them everything they need to know.

The Best Protection Ever

 He will cover you with His pinions,

And under His wings you may seek refuge;

His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.  - Psalm 91:4

The other night I headed out to the barn to do my nightly chores.  Up until now the momma hen always sat in the corner of the stall with her two little chicks tucked up underneath her.  Tonight however, the momma hen had flown up to the top of the gate to the large stall.  Her wings were pitched at a strange angle.  But where were the little ones?  I hope that another snake hadn't eaten them.  

As I looked a little closer, I realized that one of the little chicks was right beneath her!  She was sitting on her baby to protect her.  She looked at me menacingly.  Is she giving me the evil eye, or what?  But where is the other chick?

I lifted her wing to find out.  Yep, sure enough, just as the verse above says, the chick is seeking protection under the sheltering wings.

Peek-a-boo!

The imagery in that verse is so strong and descriptive.  Just as the chicks seek refuge from danger (like snakes and rats in the barn), we seek the same from Our Creator.  He is indeed our Shield and Bulwark.

That is not the only verse that uses the imagery of protective wings.  In Luke 13:34 Jesus says:

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets and stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!"

It is kind of neat to think about the fact that Jesus, as a boy in Nazareth, may have walked into his father's wood shop and found a momma hen protecting her baby chicks and that example of concern, care, and protection made an indelible mark on Him.  On the other hand, He is God.  He is the Almighty.  He made it all.  He knows how momma hens protect their little ones.  

The imagery of a hen protecting their young was, I'm sure, a familiar sight to those He was teaching in Luke 13 and I'm sure it struck a chord with them.  The tragic part of verse 34 comes at the very end - "and ye would not!"  Like the momma hen, Jesus wanted to gather them and protect them, but they were stiff-necked and would not allow Him to.  It would be a mistake to attribute that folly to the Jews of Jesus' day and not realize that we are guilty of that today.

When we go outside the protection of the Sheltering Arms, we put ourselves in harm's way from him who comes to steal, kill, and destroy.  There is evil in the world today.  There is civil unrest and violence and men kill one another.  As I type this, riots are breaking out in Charlotte, North Carolina. Lord keep us under your protective wings and may we not stray from you.

The Momma Hen (Part Deux)

After a Black Star hen hatched out a little brood of four chicks, one of which died in a rainstorm, yet another Black Star hen got broody and was sitting on three more eggs.  Usually, we'll move them aside and pick up the eggs, but we decided to allow her to hatch out her eggs.  While the previous hen had a secret nest, this girl nested in a milk crate nesting box adjacent to the goat milking stand.  As you can see, sometimes Nellie, the goat, does her business and her 'pellets' fall in the nesting box. We try to keep fresh hay in the nesting boxes, but we haven't been able to put fresh hay with her sitting on eggs.

Momma Hen with feathers all fluffed up

We heard some chirping and lifted her up to reveal one baby chick that had hatched out.  The other two eggs evidently weren't fertile and never hatched.  A 33.33% hatch rate - not as good as our incubator.  We have plenty of roosters, but apparently some of the hens aren't getting fertilized.

Checking on the Chick

Oh well.  After setting for a few more days, the hen figured out that it was futile and started to tend to her only child, nurturing for her, caring for her, and teaching her. I say her, because we're hoping it is a female.  We really don't need any more roosters.

School is in session

It is really remarkable to watch a momma hen and her offspring.  She makes all sorts of noises in communicating with her chick.  You can hear the different inflection in her clucks that identify when she's trying to send an alarm or a calm cluck when she's trying to teach or draw her chick near to her.

She will use her beak to point out where bits of food, seeds, or water is.  If the chick isn't paying attention (like a lot of students do from time to time), the mother hen will call urgently, "Come eat, watch me, learn..."  It is really neat the way God has wired Mothers to have the motherly instinct, to be so compassionate and caring. The Momma hen models behavior for her chick and expects her to watch and learn - just as human mothers do.

The chick is not paying attention

The chick may be doing her own thing, but the mother calls and then the chick will come running!

Here I am!

The hen is very protective over her little chick.  If I try to come between her and her baby, she'll make threatening noises, fluff her feathers and her little one will come running and get underneath her for protection.

A teachable moment

While the other hen had 3 little ones to keep together and observe, this hen only has one.  She can direct her full attention to raising and teaching one baby.  We also check on the chick daily and I noticed today that she is starting to put on her first little feathers.  Just like human babies, they grow up too fast and leave the nest!