Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[Roxannemc]

Remember Asparagus my very first chick from last year?

Well I am having to think about sending him t be culled because his aggression has got worse, he went for my face today when I was picking feed up. And he also went for me 5 times. I really hate him for making it have to come to this

Have you tried to hit him with a long stick when he goes after you .?Maybe its mean but it could cure him and then you wouldnt have to cull him.
A hard poke or good wack is better then dead.
Worth a try
I did that with 2 of mine and once I went after them and gave them a wack or hard poke with a long 6 ft cane pole a couple times... poke then walk toward them and poke hard again in the chest...they walk the other way
If they even look a little aggressive one day or walk toward me I get the pole and they don't bother me.
They are dumb but not that dumb sometimes. GOOD luck!

 

[Roxannemc]

Ive been incubating eggs for a year...had a Buff orp go broody recently and let her set ...yesterday checked her and had 2 baby chicks
Its so very adorable to see them with Mom, I put food and water in I hadnt checkd for 2 days so they were hungry im sure peeping loudly
She drank and ate showing them how cluck clucking lowly to them all the time ..it was totally beautiful so much nicer than the sterile incubator environment I have had all my eggs in so far. Think I will use the broodys as much as I can from now on.

Anyone know how much time you should have between a broody hatching and her next batch of eggs or do they decide themself?
Im clueless

 

[Roxannemc]

Oh have a new question...
My other hen went broody
.Been setting the last week can I still put an egg under her and will she set long enough to hatch it too?

Holy cow! Went out shes off getting food Looked in ...she had 25 eggs under her I took out all but 3 and added the one Lav Am the one I want to hatch Hope that works
Do they know to sit 21 days or do they set until the chicks hatch?then stop?
Im a total novice at broody hens hatching

 

[aoxa]

4 weeks old now!

How much does this hen weigh? She is massive!

She kept in good condition while brooding by the looks of it. Definitely didn't starve herself!

 

[wescottwomen]

Ok I have13 hens and 2 roosters in the coop we have 8 nesting boxes but all the hens lay in one box I would love to have one of the hens set and a few seam to want to try my question is how long should I leave the eggs to see if anything happens we get about 10 eggs a day so I just don't know if I leave them are the hens going to start laying in another box once that box gets full

 

[fisherlady]

Ive been incubating eggs for a year...had a Buff orp go broody recently and let her set ...yesterday checked her and had 2 baby chicks
Its so very adorable to see them with Mom, I put food and water in I hadnt checkd for 2 days so they were hungry im sure peeping loudly
She drank and ate showing them how cluck clucking lowly to them all the time ..it was totally beautiful so much nicer than the sterile incubator environment I have had all my eggs in so far. Think I will use the broodys as much as I can from now on.

Anyone know how much time you should have between a broody hatching and her next batch of eggs or do they decide themself?
Im clueless

Congrats on the new chick!
A hen will decide for herself... some are perpetually broody and will raise their chicks till 6 wks or so, lay eggs for a few weeks and then go back to the 'broody mood' .... others are more seasonal and go broody once a year or so. No rhyme or reason.

To encourage broody moods you can try placing fake eggs (aka golf balls! LOL) in a nest to prod their urge to sit. It doesn't always work, but sometimes. Often if one hen in a group goes broody then others may follow, folks like to joke that it is contagious, but it doesn't always happen that way.

Oh have a new question...
My other hen went broody
.Been setting the last week can I still put an egg under her and will she set long enough to hatch it too?

Holy cow! Went out shes off getting food Looked in ...she had 25 eggs under her I took out all but 3 and added the one Lav Am the one I want to hatch Hope that works
Do they know to sit 21 days or do they set until the chicks hatch?then stop?
Im a total novice at broody hens hatching

Mark the eggs you want her to hatch and check regularly to remove eggs that others have added to her clutch. Once she starts to sit you really don't want to keep adding eggs over multiple days because they won't all hatch at the same time and it may cause her to want to stay on the unhatched eggs and neglect her already hatched chicks, or she may get off the nest to tend the already hatched chicks and the eggs left may die. Neither is a good result. So try to keep the egg due date within a day or two...
A hen will sit for well over the 21 days... they want chicks and they are determined. If eggs don't hatch they will often continue to sit till they can hatch out a new group of eggs or you give them day old chicks from the feed mill to adopt. There are ways you can discourage a broody mood also... just look up 'breaking a broody hen' in the search above to get info for that.

Ok I have13 hens and 2 roosters in the coop we have 8 nesting boxes but all the hens lay in one box I would love to have one of the hens set and a few seam to want to try my question is how long should I leave the eggs to see if anything happens we get about 10 eggs a day so I just don't know if I leave them are the hens going to start laying in another box once that box gets full

You may encourage them by placing a group of 'fake eggs' in a couple of the non favored boxes. I use white golf balls and place 4 to 6 in a box I want to encourage use in. It can sometimes trigger a broody urge also. Using the fake eggs will allow you to collect your real ones daily.

 

[twinkletoes]

Congrats twink!!!!!
You are going to love this!!!!!!
I have my third broody (this year was my first year) due with 12 eggs on the 13th.
DH said NO more.
As luck would have it no more broody hens

Thanks! I now have another hen sitting too! If she continues to sit all day and tonight, I'll give her a few eggs. Of course I just put 32 eggs in the bator 2 weeks ago!

 

[Johnn]

Have you tried to hit him with a long stick when he goes after you .?Maybe its mean but it could cure him and then you wouldnt have to cull him.
A hard poke or good wack is better then dead.
Worth a try
I did that with 2 of mine and once I went after them and gave them a wack or hard poke with a long 6 ft cane pole a couple times... poke then walk toward them and poke hard again in the chest...they walk the other way
If they even look a little aggressive one day or walk toward me I get the pole and they don't bother me.
They are dumb but not that dumb sometimes. GOOD luck!

Thanks for the advice but someone has offered him a home so he will be leaving me on Saturday!

How much does this hen weigh? She is massive!

She kept in good condition while brooding by the looks of it. Definitely didn't starve herself!

Are you calling my hen fat?! Only joking, she is a huge girl! I don't know how much she weighs but she is very heavy! She sat for over 4 weeks too!

 

[aoxa]

Thanks for the advice but someone has offered him a home so he will be leaving me on Saturday!
Are you calling my hen fat?! Only joking, she is a huge girl! I don't know how much she weighs but she is very heavy! She sat for over 4 weeks too!

No offence meant!

Wish my setting hens didn't lose condition. They almost always do though at my place. I don't offer food/water near their nest.

 

[Johnn]

No offence meant!

Wish my setting hens didn't lose condition. They almost always do though at my place. I don't offer food/water near their nest.

She loves her food too much to loose weight!