Thanks thefarmguy and catherinet I will look for vole tunnels in the morning. Also we have a fountain that we will be putting in soon I hope. sunnibel7 I feel your pain, but I must say that really cracked me up. OH THE MEMORIES. I was that crazy lady at our other house only it was chipmunks. I am afraid things escalated from chasing to chasing/yelling and then to chasing/yelling and throwing rocks. Fortunately, for them, they made me so insanely angry that I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with the rocks. I swear they did it on purpose for their own entertainment. We have been really lucky to have a pair of hawks nest here the last 4 years so they cleared up quite a few of the rodents. Thanks again for the suggestions. I'll look for signs of voles. Haven't seen any rabbits, but again it doesn't mean they are not there.

Okay, I understand what is happening now. I wasn't criticizing, just couldn't figure a reason not to let the hen do her job. Keep any hatched chicks in the brooder for the moment. Divide the brooder with a piece of chicken wire to protect the youngest one, but so that they can still see each other. A single chick is a lonely chick... not good. I wouldn't want to disturb the mama hen right now, but as soon as the hatch is complete or you decide that is enough, put her and the last chicks she hatched into a safe area where she can raise them free from interference. This can simply be a corner of the chicken house that you fence off or a little pen in the yard with a small "house" attached. Make it predator proof! There is an advantage to having Mama Hen and babies in sight of the others... it minimizes problems when you eventually integrate them. Now, back to the chicks in the brooder. It is fairly easy to add chicks to others that are under a broody. Most people sneak them under at night. Hens can't count and this usually works. There is another way too, but I don't have time at the moment to explain it. If you have not already visited Velvet Sparrow's website, I highly recommend it. Don't forget to bookmark it for future reference. Here is a link that might be useful: Velvet's Website

Lisa - thanks for the play-by-play. Your little Hussy sounds like such a character! Congrats on the five new blues!

I don't think you have any legal rights regarding see your grand kids. If there was ever a vote on that kind of law I would fight it because my mother in law was one crazy woman and I would never leave my children with her for any reason, their Dad and I would have gone under ground with them. The struggle for 2 parents to get equal time with their own kids is daunting without throwing grand parents into the mix. I am sorry for what you are going through and am very glad I had more interests than just grand kids.