I was bummed but, think I figured out the problem.

[Stubbornhillfarm]

Well, we have two survivors so far!

This is the first one deciding to explore the great outdoors, one - step - at - a - time.

It didn't take long before she found out that hanging with the big girls wasn't so bad!

 

[Ridgerunner]

Did you ever figure out what was going wrong?

 

[Stubbornhillfarm]

Not really 100% sure. I think that as I suspected. The ones that were on the floor fell out. And the one that was under the mother ???? No idea. Haven't had any more hatch in the last few days. So the last one that hatched #2 is still under the mother in the nesting box.

I am guessing that they should be out and about soon. She still has eggs under her, but nothing. Maybe we have a bunch of dud eggs.

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

it could be that moma was a clumsy lady and stepped on it while it was hatching. or the chick could have been too slow to get out of the way from moma moving. i have seen that happening to my own and if i can i will pull a slow chick out from moma to hand raise. i haven't had to do that in some time though.

 

[bj taylor]

my mama has done very well with her two young uns. they've gotten so big. one is actually on the roost with the big boys and girls tonight. brave little fella.

 

[desertlady]

Got me thinking about those poor chickies youve lost, do you suppose the the hen is very large and she stepped on them ? I have small breeds silkies and cochins, I havent that kind of problem. The only thing I felt bad is when my hens ( or sometimes funny) start scratching the ground for food, she will accidently kick her babies around. knocking them over on their backs. They are fine. they get right back up !!

 

[Ridgerunner]

Yeah, Im still at a total loss about this. Its real rare for me to lose any chicks that hatch under a broody. Really rare to lose any at all. The only time Ive lost more than one was when that broody killed three of her chicks and raised the other five. I still think them hatching from those teeny tiny pullet eggs had something to do with that, though the other five hatched from teeny tiny pullet eggs too.

Ive seen what you are talking about. The hen is scratching for food and accidently gets one of her chicks. That chick may go flying two or three feet but hops up and runs back to Mama. Not hurt at all. There might be a difference in newly hatches still wet chicks and those that are older and have been active. Maybe something agitated Mama when they were helpless and new like that and she stepped on them while defending her nest? But that doesnt make sense. It happened at different times.

What you have described is totally outside my experience. There has to be something unique about your situation but I cant figure it out.

 

[Nyboy]

Hens are like people not all make good mothers.

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

i've been having that issue too this year. i have a very large hen by the name of 'Big Momma' Fay who is very broody (still is) and she had a bunch of eggs under her but she kept breaking them. she is probably on the very large end for a LF faverolles hen-pushing at least 10lbs! eventually one of my other hens decided she wanted to be broody too and tried to share her nest box-Kit who is a little smaller than Fay. one day i noticed one of the eggs had hatched but the chick was flattened under the Kit's foot. so i pulled Kit out and moved Momma Fay and the nest box into one of the large dog pens i use for the last week of broodiness. since then the rest of the eggs under her either went bad, missing or hatched and crushed under her with a fully formed chick. she hasn't had any luck so far. i'm thinking she is such a large hen she hasn't figured out how much weight she should be putting on those eggs while brooding. it's the only thing that comes to mind since she went broody last year too but i didn't let her have any eggs after she and another hen were fighting over the next box and breaking eggs during that time too.

so far i've only had luck letting my bantams hatch eggs when they go broody.

oh, and i should mention that Fay has been good with my 2 young ones in the coop. a few nights their 'momma' has been trying to roost up high with the rest of my flock and the 2 chicks have been trying to find cozy spaces down low in the coop. so they have run into the pen with Fay and she will let them cozy up beside and under her. both chicks are about a month old and almost fully feathered out now but still small and peeping. so i think Fay thinks of them as part of her family.

 

[Nyboy]

Do you give oyster shell for calcium? It makes the egg shell harder.