Broody at 5.5 months?

[aliciaFarmer]

Awwww bless her sounds like she will be an amazing mummy! Mabel, my light Sussex, surprised the living daylights out of me doing the same thing in the spring at the same age. She was a great mummy!

I love hearing that about your Mabel so much! And thank you -- I'm so very excited. Very surprised, but looking forward to the potential of three more babies. ❤

 

[1cock2hens]

just fyi young broodies will often abandon the nest before the hatch is complete and as for the comment made about slipping chicks under a broody that only works in some circumstances that is far far from guaranteed

 

[aliciaFarmer]

just fyi young broodies will often abandon the nest before the hatch is complete and as for the comment made about slipping chicks under a broody that only works in some circumstances that is far far from guaranteed

I know, thank you. ♡ I've been here before, just not for a long time and never with such a young pullet. I just cross my fingers and wait to see what happens.

 

[PouleChick]

I just cross my fingers and wait to see what happens.

That is how I roll too - I had a back up plan with my girl - I borrowed my neighbours incubator so I could save them in case of emergency if she decided to do this. As it turned out I ended up doing a split hatch with some in the incubator and some under her as we had some issues (with where the next was, she kept breaking them getting in and out as it was tipping - totally not her fault but wouldn't be moved!) but she happily took the 'bator ones back!

 

[aliciaFarmer]

That is how I roll too - I had a back up plan with my girl - I borrowed my neighbours incubator so I could save them in case of emergency if she decided to do this. As it turned out I ended up doing a split hatch with some in the incubator and some under her as we had some issues (with where the next was, she kept breaking them getting in and out as it was tipping - totally not her fault but wouldn't be moved!) but she happily took the 'bator ones back!

That's so great! I don't have a back-up plan, unfortunately, but I'm hopeful. She's so determined that she's not getting up for anything and I had to gently force food and water today (it's literally inches from her but she apparently doesn't want to move that far). I would love to have "just in case" access to an incubator for sure.

 

[PouleChick]

She's so determined that she's not getting up for anything

Sounds like she is doing great You'd probably be surprised, thye often do it while no one is around. Check the water / feed levels - they may go down a little (and they really don't eat a lot!). For me the best way of seeing if they had been up was the big stinky poo

I would love to have "just in case" access to an incubator for sure.

Might be worth looking around - you can find them 2nd hand pretty cheaply or build one. I think I'll get one next spring (or maybe look over the winter while no one is hatching!).

 

[aart]

That's so great! I don't have a back-up plan, unfortunately, but I'm hopeful. She's so determined that she's not getting up for anything and I had to gently force food and water today (it's literally inches from her but she apparently doesn't want to move that far). I would love to have "just in case" access to an incubator for sure.

Give her a few days, then bring her out of nest to eat...not good for them to eat and drink in the nest, more likely to poop in nest if you do that.

 

[beetandsteet]

I have a 5 1/2 month old sex-link hen who's been sitting on eggs for a few weeks now. Surprised me as well how quickly she went broody! I made sure she was actually serious about brooding before I gave her any fertile eggs to hatch.

 

[aliciaFarmer]

Sounds like she is doing great You'd probably be surprised, thye often do it while no one is around. Check the water / feed levels - they may go down a little (and they really don't eat a lot!). For me the best way of seeing if they had been up was the big stinky poo

Might be worth looking around - you can find them 2nd hand pretty cheaply or build one. I think I'll get one next spring (or maybe look over the winter while no one is hatching!).

Unfortunately neither the water nor food levels have changed at all unless she got up to poop and ate and then. She had been getting up once every morning but yesterday I sat there for hours and she didn't. I suspect it's because once she got up, another chicken immediately went to sit on her clutch of fake eggs. I'm going to make her some scrambled eggs and peas right now and I know she can't resist that.

Holy cow, I didn't know you could make an incubator! I never even thought about it. I'm so Googling this. If I can't find one, Craigslist is next. Thank you so much!

 

[PouleChick]

Unfortunately neither the water nor food levels have changed at all unless she got up to poop and ate and then.

I estimated that my silkies (which to be fair are smaller than yours) were only eating about a table spoon of food a day so it really isn't much at all. Great to keep an eye on her though as she is young and inexperienced and as you say might be scared to get off. Is there anyway you can build something around her so she has space to get up but feel secure the others cna't get in? My broody pen isn't very large (maybe 1.5 m x 4.5m with 2 broody coops in it) but I have a tyre in there for dust bathing and I put the food / water outside in the day which forces them to get up. If I am worried I tend to pick them up and put them out of the broody coops. They will generally have a poo, a drink, some food (but honestly not much) and a dust bath every couple of days then take themselves back.