Broody Hen Thread!

[Tialena]

Hi, first time chicken mama first time broody mama this is my beautiful broody "Lady Tia" we are on day 19 now. So far she has been brilliant leaving her nest once a day to poop and eat an sqwark around for about 30 mins. So far we havnt heard any cheeping but it's early days yet she is sitting on 6 silkie eggs, not her own though as we do not have a cock, we bought fertile eggs off a lovely lady who also rescues chickens. We are super eggcited lol can't wait to see lil fluffy bums running around xx

 

[fisherlady]

Well the last few days have been rough for me. One of my young cockerels from Aggie's Feb brood turned up with some sort of neck injury. Don't know what happened but over the course of 3 days he declined no matter what we did until tonight he began to suffer convulsions every time we picked him up to try to feed him or give him water. We don't know what happened or how. Just a continued neurological deficit that seemed to worsen until the last thing we could do for our little Tweek boy was release him from his suffering. He is buried next to his dad who died a little over a month ago.

Don't tell me angels don't watch over our feathered friends because after we buried Tweek, I went into the coop to gather eggs and discovered that I have a new broody. Life renewing itself. Yesterday I had a red letter day with the hens. 13 hens, 13 eggs. First time that happened. I don't think those girls could stand the sight of all those eggs and resist the urge to flop their fluffy butts on them.

To make things more interesting, I witnessed Aggie gobbling down oyster shell tonight. She usually does that before she goes broody. Time will tell.

Sorry to hear you lost your young fellow...it is so frustrating when nothing is working and not knowing where to start makes it even worse.
Congratulations on your broody and I hope Aggie is thinking about it too!

 

[Tialena]

Sorry forget pic

 

[microchick]

Thanks fisherlady. It is indeed hard.

My girl (aka: Little Girl) is sitting on three eggs right now and was very indignant when I took them out from under her to mark them. Little devil was hiding one on me.

I dropped some fence around her until I can get her moved to the broody nest which I need to clean out and get ready for her. In the mean time I'm on a treasure hunt for bantam eggs. I have one possible lead and have an Amish neighbor I need to visit this morning to see if he has any fertile eggs.

Aggie isn't broody yet but I'm still thinking she will be soon.

 

[FaerieChicken]

Well my first time broody finally hatched an egg over the weekend. Out of 9 eggs set, only 1 survived all the way through! The broody is Bullet, a Silver Penciled Rock/Light Brown Leghorn cross. She is very pretty! The rest of the eggs that did not make it, 6 of them were pecked open by a Blue Jay, them **** birds don't even eat the egg, just peck it an leave it, I have such a problem with these birds. Its my fault though. I had moved Bullet out of the main coop to a broody pen, and she got out and couldn't get back in, and while she was out is when the Blue Jays struck! Then because the Blues didn't eat the contents, wasps did! it was horrible, and sad, I actually saw the black fetus in one egg as the wasps were in there drinking up all they could.

So I decided to put here back into the main coop with her remaining 3 eggs. Well, while candling them in their final week, 1 was lost to human error, I dropped it and was so upset at myself. But they were all progressing very well. Then on Saturday, I went after work to check on Bullet, and low n behold, there was a chick! SQUEAL and I was just waiting for the other to hatch. but then, to my sad surprise, on Sunday, Bullet had switched crates, and left the last egg. I took it and shoved it under her. It was already very cold at that point, but I was hopeful! Unfortunately on Monday, Bullet decided to take her single, solitary chick on an outing, leaving the egg to again become cold. I candled, and could not see any movement, there appeared to be liquid inside. It would not hold warmth any more, despite my "Towel in the Dryer" trick. I decided that the chick had died in shell, and I opened it, and yes, it had, still had a significant amount of yolk sack left, just like the one I had accidentally dropped, but this one was more developed. Who knows what happened to it, poor thing.

I am glad though that Bullet gets to be a first time momma, and unlike her predecessor, Nubs whom is a bad, very bad momma that doesn't teach the chicks how to eat, I think Bullet is doing a great job so far!

This is Bullet!

 

[Selsley]

@chicken19 , @Beth77 how did your hatches go?

 

[wyandottegirl]

Hi guys.

I have a broody hen who just hatched out a chick! We've had loads of chicks but this is our first hick hatched by a hen. Is it alright for our broody hen to eat the starter with the chick? Or to I need to feed her layer pellets tot he side?

 

[chuckachucka]

Wyandottegirl Chick crumbs are great for the mother hen too. Its hard to keep the food separate and my hen prefers to eat with the chicks anyway, so its just easier to give them the same. I think it has a higher energy content for growing so is good for the mother after being stuck on the nest not eating much for weeks too.

 

[slordaz]

Hi guys.

I have a broody hen who just hatched out a chick! We've had loads of chicks but this is our first hick hatched by a hen. Is it alright for our broody hen to eat the starter with the chick? Or to I need to feed her layer pellets tot he side?

yep they don't need laying feed when they are brooding

 

[microchick]

Well, this is probably going to turn out to be one of my more interesting broody stories.

I got up this morning and went to work trying to find bantam eggs nearby that I could pop under my hen. We have an Amish neighbor that has what looks like OEGB. We see his birds out every time we drive by. Cute little devils, usually a rooster leading a hen or two around. Many times they are holding up traffic as they cross the road. I stopped by to talk to him to see if he had any hatching eggs he might want to sell me. He talked to his son who went into the barn and came out grinning with two handfuls of small white eggs. He got them out from under a hen and said they were 'mostly' OEGBs and told me how he had come by his rooster. A man had given him a game rooster wanting him to breed fighting birds and he didn't want to do that so now he has all these little devils running around.....By that time the eggs were in my egg carrier and they were insisting I take them. No charge. How could I say no? They were so pleased to be able to help me out.

My hen was more than willing to tuck them under her. I'm going to go out tonight or tomorrow night to candle and try to figure out how far along they are.

Like I said this is going to be a fun ride. At least I know the three already under her are on day one....