HELP-Has anyone ever successfully moved a broody with eggs?

[chickensioux]

I am concerned about a certain broody of mine. She is in a nesting box that is about 3 ft. off the ground. She is sitting on call duck eggs. A friend of mine had some of my eggs under a broody hen too and the hatch rate was good but the survival rate was not. I was wondering if I moved my broody when it gets a little closer to hatch time (next Tues.) if she would get too upset and abandon or feel safer. Any advice would be appreciated. Anyone have any luck with this?

 

[chickensioux]

anyone?

 

[Camelot Farms]

I moved my broody 3 times in one day...lol.

First time she was in a sideways bucket. Threw a towel over the bucket and moved entire bucket and broody to a private pen.

Then she decided to move the eggs from the bucket onto the floor of the pen. But kept losing some of them to the slope so we moved her again.
This time to a different pen. Threw a towel over her head, picked her up and DS moved all of the eggs into a deep plastic pan (rubber feeding pan) that was pre-nested for her with some straw.
Sat her down and she was very happy!

10 days later, she is happily brooding away

 

[Mikeeeeeeeeee]

I had a set of BOs that went broody together over 26 eggs.
I moved them about a week into it all, and they never minded one bit.

 

[Spudzville]

I've tried moving a Broody with eggs, it just doesn't work. I always move the hen into a large crate after a chick has hatched and she is perfectly content to stay with her babies. If you know the hatch date just keep an eye for the first baby and then move her with the baby and eggs, she should stay put.

 

[cashdl]

I have moved three of my broody hens this last week. The first one doesn't care what you do with her as long as her eggs go with her. The second one took several days of trying, and the 3rd one took a week of trying. My best advice is to move them after they have gone to sleep. It is what I finally had to do with two of mine and it worked great.

Lanae

 

[froggie71]

Just did this yesterday as a matter of fact. Our nesting boxes are removeable, so we moved the entire box into the large dog kennel we have that we placed in the coop. At first the broody didn't want to be on the nest and wanted to go back to where the nesting box was, but after giving her some food and water in the kennel and letting her roam around for a few minutes outside to take her broody poop

, she went right back to her nest and is sitting like a good girl again.

 

[Keri78]

I've had some failed attempts at moving broodies in the past. But exactly 21 days ago...I moved two of my buff orp broodies and one decided to stay broody and one after two days...decided against it???? Go figure Sooo...TODAY ...I have brand new peepers popping out!!!

If they are "special eggs"...I don't think I would chance it...it's a 50-50% chance...not good odds! I'd box it off around her so she's safe & sound...don't worry she's not going to let those chicks out from under her during the first day anyway! They are really too weak to get far. I would let her hatch them out and then move her wherever you want...once the babies are here...she's 100% NOT going to change her mind about being a Mama then!

 

[aerosmith_99]

I have taken broody before and once they started pipping out, transfered the eggs to the incubator and replaced them with new eggs. You can only do this the one time so she doesn't get too stressed. I generally try and pet the hen all along during her nesting so she gets used to be. Then I gently ease her off the nest and rub her some more so she doesn't get upset and abandon her nest.

 

[BarkerChickens]

I think it depends on the hen and place. I can move them from nest to nest sometimes, but main coop to brooder coop seems to instantly break the broody hens at my place.

(Not a very broody coop now is it). Another hen won't go anywhere, but the place she chose.