Appropriate spot for a broody hen?

[Jodi_in_Colorado]

I'm losing faith in my eggs that are in the incubator so planning to see if I can use this broody hen of ours. We have a separate mini coop that we built for our babies. It is about 3 feet square with its own very small run. Would I need to build a nesting box inside of the little coop for our broody girl or could I just put her in there with her eggs? There's a door so I could get something in there if needed. I heard you could use a 5 gallon bucket. Any other ideas?

 

[NatJ]

If you move the broody, I would give her fake eggs (or eggs you are willing to throw away) for at least the first 24 hours. Hens will sometimes get upset when you move them, and may pace and fret trying to get back to the former nest. This lets eggs get cold, or even breaks eggs. So wait until she is setting calmly before giving her the eggs you actually want hatched.

We have a separate mini coop that we built for our babies. It is about 3 feet square with its own very small run. Would I need to build a nesting box inside of the little coop for our broody girl or could I just put her in there with her eggs? There's a door so I could get something in there if needed. I heard you could use a 5 gallon bucket. Any other ideas?

She might be fine in there with no separate nestbox, or she might prefer something cozy.

I would probably give her a cardboard box for a nestbox. Just choose one about the right size, turn it on its side, and put in bedding/eggs/hen.

 

[Perris]

that's great advice; I'd follow it. But why are you losing faith in the eggs in the incubator? If the incubator's faulty, the eggs may already be dead. And how long have they been in there?

 

[Jodi_in_Colorado]

that's great advice; I'd follow it. But why are you losing faith in the eggs in the incubator? If the incubator's faulty, the eggs may already be dead. And how long have they been in there?

We are now late in day 22. No pips. 4 were still moving yesterday but I see nothing today. It was so weird. It was my best incubation so far. I was 12/12 at day 7 and 8/12 at lockdown. We did have a power outage for 4 minutes on day 20. Not sure if there was a power surge that screwed up the thermometer or what.

 

[Perris]

I'm not sure a broody could rescue that situation; but maybe they're just resting before the last push to hatch?

 

[Jodi_in_Colorado]

I'm not sure a broody could rescue that situation; but maybe they're just resting before the last push to hatch?

I would start new with her. I'm giving this crew another couple days. Fingers crossed.... I've always had pips by day 20 with this incubator so I don't know what happened this time.