17 down to 10 eggs...

[Sara Ranch]

My broody buff jumped off the nest and I was able to do a triple count of the eggs - 17! I know, way too many, but she was able to cover them all almost 100% of the time.

A few days later, she jumped off the nest and I was able to do another count - 12 eggs. Lost 5 eggs.

Today, I lifted her up and counted - 10 eggs. Lost 2 more. The eggs that are under her are dirty from sand and stuff.

There are several other hens that insist on standing on her or in her nesting box and laying eggs. I suspect several eggs that she was sitting on were broken. I've seen her immediately push out the eggs that were laid in her box.

I know that her eggs were viable. One was collected Saturday. When I cracked it open it was a nearly ready to hatch chick. It even had little toenails! I don't know if she accidentally pushed it out or if it was pushed out when one of the other chickens went to lay in the same box.

She's been collecting eggs and sitting for a month now. Figure 17 eggs took her a bit to collect. (My guess is she collected 3-4 eggs a day.) So the other eggs could be hatching out any day now.

I bring her food a few times a day.

Suggestions or recommendations? I don't want to accidentally kill any of the unborn chicks. I don't want to move her and eggs this late in the broody cycle.

After this batch -- especially if none successfully hatch, how long should I wait before I move her to the safe maternity ward to sit on another batch of eggs? Yes, I have had to set up a maternity ward for the serious moms due to other hens not being considerate. This gal has been broody for months.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

If she's been broody for months I would break her after this as she's probably lost a lot of weight sitting, and could break before she can hatch another batch.

Did you mark the original eggs? Can you candle them. Sounds like you may end up with a staggered hatch which isn't fun. Either pull the chicks or expect losses if you don't have a way to finish incubating them.

 

[Sara Ranch]

She's holding her own with 10 eggs now. I feed her multiple times during the day and her weight loss seems to be minimal.

I haven't marked the original eggs. I could do that today - what's left under her. Lol - she becomes a dead weight when I try to lift her up. She has no interest in letting me check her eggs.

I tried twice to candle them. It's been tough - super tough - to do. The coop isn't dark enough. I tried to do it under a dark towel. It showed a viable egg, but maybe half way to completion?

I have thought about candling them at night, when it's dark. That's a bit more challenging. By the time it's dark outside, I am getting ready for bed. I am so on the sun schedule, all year round.

I tried to clean the eggs I candled. Get the sand off. It didn't work. That stuff seems to be glued on there.

She's been broody for months. It's actually part of the ranch plan to have new chicks hatch out every year. So far, that has been a challenge due to the other hens not being considerate of broody hens.

She's actually starting to pluck the feathers of nearby chickens. The feathers are added to her nest. It seems to have dramatically cut down the nest invasions!

I will mark the eggs in the nesting box today.

I will try to remember to candle the eggs tonight, when it's dark.

Fingers crossed that all goes well and she actually hatches out some babies!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I just carefully remove eggs and take them to a dark shed to candle.

 

[Sara Ranch]

The nearest "dark" place to candle is a short hike (about 3 minutes) up to the house and into the bathroom. There's no closer "dark" space.

Think it's ok to actually wash the eggs in water? I am uncomfortable with the idea of a baby chick trying to hatch and getting a mouthful of sand.

And she should be in lockdown now. Still think it's ok to candle the eggs?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Don't wash eggs you want to set, or those that are set. You will wash off the bloom and bacteria is free to enter the eggs through the exposed pores.

If she's that close I wouldn't bother candling. Knowing the first day of incubation is important so you know when to dispose of eggs so they don't become exploding stink bombs. Once you smell that it changes the way you do business as far as managing hatching eggs.

 

[Sara Ranch]

Yeah, her first day is hard to note.

I marked the calendar the day she started sitting and wouldn't get up -- which was the day after I had cleared her nest out.

I track how many eggs I gather from the flocks daily. So I know it could have been a week of gathering eggs before the heat got turned on.

If I give her a week to collect before turning on the heat, she was due last Saturday. From the get go, she's been consistently sitting on the eggs. All eggs are covered by her body.

No funky smell from her nest or the eggs I picked up.

The one egg that I broke open (it was collected from the other areas) had a nearly done chick. That was about 2 weeks ago.

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What I do with a seriously broody hen is bring her into the maternity ward and give her 9 fresh eggs collected that day. All should hatch about the same time and I know the exact start date. I didn't with her because she was holding her own in the beginning.