Advice on letting broody hen hatch eggs

[lazy gardener]

That's possible, but I really don't know if that had anything to do with it, or if she is just dropping worms. Do a thread search to see what round worms look like. I'm guessing that is what she has. IMO, you can worm her if she is setting. Better to do so now, than wait till the chicks hatch. You can use a regular helminthicide, go with a natural approach which includes herbals, pumpkin seeds, and garlic, or do nothing. One thing I'd not do is give her anything which will make her stools looser than normal. You don't want to risk having her defecate in the nest and dirty the eggs.

 

[cbookout]

So just to update. I decided to take a fecal sample to the vet and he gave me Strongid T. He recommended a .1 cc dose now and another in 2 weeks for my 2lb silkie hen. He also consulted some giant vet book just to make sure he was right on the dosage. He loaded it up into a needless syringes for me to squirt into her mouth. It was very easy to do. He charged me $12 total.
I would recommend to anyone just to go to the vet and get them to give you something for worms instead of guessing. My vet was very helpful and also gave me a sample thing to test all my other chickens (that I keep at a different location) just for a well check.

Storeys Guide to Raising Chickens recommended a dose of Ivomec. My vet said he disagreed with that and did not feel that Ivomec, even in tiny doses was a good idea for chickens. So my chicken bible was incorrect.

Also, I gave my setting hen a big lump of minced garlic to eat just to keep mosquitos away from her and the next day was when I noticed she pooped out 2 long white slowly moving worms! After that day and before I got the Strongid, I checked her feces everyday for 3 days and never saw another worm. So in my opinion, garlic really does help as a dewormer. I would not substitute it for a actual recommendation from my vet but I will def be giving all my chickens a big heap of minced garlic once a month for mosquito control and possible worms.

And one more bit of info. This morning my setting silkie came out of her box to eat and stretch her legs and poop and walk around. Usually she comes out for no more than 5 or 10 min and goes right back to work. Today she did not go back in? Almost 20 minutes passed and I decided to put her back in the house and shut the door. She tried to get out! It took her a good 5 minutes after I shut her in the house to get back on the eggs. Did she forget? So far she has been excellent with those eggs but today she just did not want to go back in there. I checked the eggs this morning and they are all progressing nicely, actually seem much more developed than they would normally be at 7 days (is that possible)? So I'm not sure why she had a momentary moment of regret?

Thanks all!

 

[Amiti]

I just got my first cockeral, and attempting to be a responsible chicken owner, I wanted to read up on broody hatching. I found this helpful and will share my story when I get a broody hen. Thanks for all your stories.

 

[valleychick1]

I honestly didn't read through all the posts so am hoping someone will please help!!
I had 2 broody hens and was fortunate to receive fertile eggs to place under each.
it has been 21 days today. 2 of the eggs have hatched under one and there are still 4 there.
there are 4 under the other with no hatching yet.
how long do i leave the unhatched eggs?
with the chicks, i have food and water available but am not sure they have been out.
also, the hen seems to be pooping in the box, is this normal? i am going to try to clean out the nest.
i am so excited to have the two that have hatched (Wednesday) that i don't want anything to happen.

please help!!!!!

 

[clkirk]

I am looking for some advice. I have two broody Cochin's sharing a nest. The first one has been sitting on eggs for about a week. I noticed that there were more eggs than she could cover because the second hen was still laying right next to the first. About a week later the second hen went broody. There is only one nest on the floor of the coop and they are both laying on it. Will this be a problem come hatch time? I suspect half of the eggs will hatch a week sooner than the rest. I would rather let nature take its course but don't want to loose chicks. Should I make 2 nests and move the hens? Would I need to candle the eggs to know which one to put under each hen? How will the rooster treat new chicks? Will he need to be separated from the hens? As you can tell, we have never had a broody hen before. We purchased these Cochin's last fall for my daughter to use for her 4H project and she is so excited to have baby Cochin's.

 

[Amiti]

Im not experienced enough to know all the answers to those question n im not the type tho make bs up, so i can only tell you this. I happen to know for a fact that your two broodies will happily raise chicks together. I have seen it happen on 2 seperate occasions.

 

[clkirk]

Thanks for the input. My concern is that they will hatch at two different times and that will cause trouble.

 

[goWest5]

Hi all,
Just a quick update on what can work. We had 2 very young hens (they are 9 mos old) go broody at the same time. We left each one have 4 eggs. A week and a half later our black australorpe decided to join the group and went broody too. I ordered some day olds for her to "hatch" since I wanted to intrusive some new beds and let her sit on wooden eggs. Since I didn't know any better, all three stayed in the coop taking up 3 of the 4 laying nests (this did cause some issues with the other 6 hens but they all managed to work it out somehow). Well, over the past 3 days 7 of the 8 eggs have hatched and I think number 8 will hatch today!. All the chicks are strong and all THREE hens have adopted them and are working together as a team taking care of the chicks and sitting on the eggs (3 of which are wooden)!
So far it looks like things are going well... Team hens, no issues with the other hens or the rooster that come in at night to roost (they free range by day) and just one more real egg to hatch!
Wanted to share my story since it seems I did everything a little wrong and as others have said nature made it all right.

 

[rainy day]

So I just had 2 new chicks and the hen left just before another on hatched. She won't take care of the new chick. What do I need to do? Will it eat on its own?

 

[chickenmama7977]

Could someone weigh in on whether to let my Broody try a second clutch of eggs? Her first clutch hasn't hatched and I am down to 4 eggs. Giving them w few more days but if nothing then should I let her start again?