Hen and Chicks

So mama hen came off her nest today which means she has abandoned any eggs that haven't hatched. There were 15 eggs placed underneath her when she decided to go broody and she successfully hatched 12. Of the 3 remaining eggs: one died early on, one failed to pip and one pipped but the egg got damaged and it died.

When I moved Mama to her current spot she was nasty and bit me hard, three times. She has calmed down (or gotten used to me) and lets me lift her up, check chicks, etc without much resistance. She does a weird growling thing and puffs up real big just to let me know she does not approve.

The chicks aren't much smaller than the hatchery chicks but they have added cuteness because of the interaction with each other and mom. When they have had enough exploring they scurry under mama for cuddles and warm. When they are feeling cuuious the peak out from underneath her. Some chicks are braver than others but they are all adorable.

Mama hen hiding her babies and looking around for danger.


Mama hen uses her beak to scratch out food for her babies.


Fuzzy butts waiting for mama to finish...


Where am I? I am so alone!

Feed us, feed us!


Whatcha doing Mama?


Put that camera away woman.


Love me and all my sweet fluffiness.


What are you still doing here? Beat it, your disrupting my nap time.