Broodie hen and lockdown

[birdlover2]

Update: it is day 19 and one egg has pipped! It is egg number 1 too, which is funny (I labeled them all at the start). I'm so glad to see there are survivors from the other day when they got cold.

I cannot hear peeping because the 2 older chicks in the hutch below won't shut up!

I've now taken the broodie's food and water out of the hutch and will replace with chick friendly food and water containers tomorrow at the other end. I got her off the eggs briefly yesterday and today for pooping and she didn't disappoint!

It is evening here and I'm hoping I get up in the morning to at least one baby chick. I am ridiculously excited!

As an aside, she went to chase and peck the older chicks today when I put her down in the run, as they were there with their mum. They are 3 weeks old and tiny. I'm hoping that is not a bad sign that she will attack her own. Don't want to jinx it by even thinking this.

Do Polish hens make good mums to chicks? She has been good so far with her eggs.

Glad that at least one more has pipped! That's a good sign. Attacking another chicken's chicks does not mean she'll attack her own. Has she imprinted on them? How did she behave when they first hatched?

 

[Chicalina]

Only one so far of this clutch has pipped. I'm taking it as a very good sign that the other 7 eggs she has may also hatch

No, she hasn't imprinted on the 2 older chicks at all. She has heard them 24/7 and seen them a few times but today was the first day she has had contact with them. They are 3 weeks old and with the other broodie I have. If I remember right, she actually went broody when they were born, hence me putting another clutch of eggs under her when they were just 3 days old. She has been very committed the whole incubation period, so I assumed she would make a good mum to raise her own.

This is her first time at this. Not mine, but you wouldn't guess it, cos I'm a bag of nerves!!!

I resisted candling the last few days (have actually only candled these eggs twice so far), but I'm sitting on my hands to stop going myself going out to the coop to peek under her and look at them all for more pips and zipping. I am not a patient person!

 

[birdlover2]

Only one so far of this clutch has pipped. I'm taking it as a very good sign that the other 7 eggs she has may also hatch

No, she hasn't imprinted on the 2 older chicks at all. She has heard them 24/7 and seen them a few times but today was the first day she has had contact with them. They are 3 weeks old and with the other broodie I have. If I remember right, she actually went broody when they were born, hence me putting another clutch of eggs under her when they were just 3 days old. She has been very committed the whole incubation period, so I assumed she would make a good mum to raise her own.

This is her first time at this. Not mine, but you wouldn't guess it, cos I'm a bag of nerves!!!

I resisted candling the last few days (have actually only candled these eggs twice so far), but I'm sitting on my hands to stop going myself going out to the coop to peek under her and look at them all for more pips and zipping. I am not a patient person!

(OH! That's who the two other chicks are, I get it, they're the other broodys' chicks. I was so confused and thought they were hers hatched earlier lol. It's alright, I'm always nervous about my animals lol. I'm not very patient either lol, but you do have to let her do her job!

 

[Chicalina]

lol, yes! The ones that hatched before aren't hers.

I am always telling other people to not meddle and just wait. But I'm terrible at taking my own advice, haha!

And I'm a total worry wort too which makes it all much worse.

I'm trying to relax this evening with a bit of TV and not peeking under the broodie!!! Let's see how long I last

 

[Aapomp831]

I agree. Broodies were created to have the perfect conditions for their eggs to hatch. I have learned that the less I mess with them, the better.

The reason the broodie plucks feathers out of her chest is to create humidity by resting the egg against bare skin. They do monitor humidity, which I think is incredible

 

[Chicalina]

Broodies are indeed amazing.

Even having had kids myself, I am still in awe of mammals as a general species who incubate internally and give birth to live babies too! Isn't nature awesome?

 

[bobbi-j]

Broodies are indeed amazing.

Even having had kids myself, I am still in awe of mammals as a general species who incubate internally and give birth to live babies too! Isn't nature awesome?

It is indeed!

 

[kiwi-chick]

In January this year I had 2 broody's hatch a chick each - they hatched within 4 days of each other and the 2 hens ran around with the 2 chicks together! They taught the chicks together and they also played Aunt while the one hen bathed the other had both chicks.

I let my broody's integrate with the flock when they are ready, usually on day 2 after hatching.

 

[Chicalina]

The pipped egg hatched overnight. Gorgeous little baby with same colouring as his dad, but he has wry neck . Gave him some chicken vitamin water through a syringe and put him back under the mama hen. Not sure what else I can do.

 

[Chicalina]

2 more!!