Broody Buff Orpington

Woytgirl

Songster
Apr 24, 2017
368
339
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I am nervous about letting her hatch because I've never hatched chicks b4. Tips would be awesome!! I will post updates here. Thanks in advance.:)
 
ok the following comes from research, i haven't gone through it myself, i stop my buffs from being broody bc i'm not ready for that yet personally but here are some good tips i've learned..

keep the hen seperate now from the rest so she can't be intimidated enclose the area she's in with chicken wire or something
keep a little food and water close to her so she can eat while not wondering too far from her eggs

other warnings
hen may give up being broody and not hatch out the eggs
hen may be a good sitter but not a good mother so be prepared to raise the chicks in a brooder if that happens.


good luck! :)
 
Thank you!! I hope I can keep her in the coop with the others, since she is the top hen she isn't picked on. One got to close and she pulled it's feathers. Do you guys think its ok for her to stay there? I have a shed if she can't be with the others but its not predator proof.
 
She got up, ate, drank, and pooped.
How long will they stay off the nest to do that? She stayed off for around 10 minutes.
 
A broody hen will get off the nest once a day to eat, drink, poop, and dust bath. Generally it lasts from 10-30 minutes.

I have hatched in the coop. On hatch day I'm around to keep an eye on things and make sure the hen takes care of them instead of casting them out. You also need to watch for wandering chicks who don't often return to the hen and will chill and die.

If your hen rejects or attacks the chicks than you will need to raise them. Some hens don't know what chicks are, especially first time setters.

If the hen is in a nestbox I move her and the brood to the floor by the evening with the hopes she will settle. I put up a temporary circle of fence to contain the family and put a small waterer and feed within reach of the setting hen. I keep my hen confined to the pen for about a week to give the chicks a chance to get strong and for the family to bond. It also allows other flock members to become familiar with them through the fence.

After a week I release them and see how it goes. Sometimes there's troubles with other hens, other times it goes okay. I will often confine the family at night for another week, than after that I let them be unless they are still having troubles.
 
Thanks!! Yes I will separate her and the chick when it hatches since the others arent as friendly to the chicks. I am nervous/excited!! ☺
 
This is my first time hatching chicks in a incubator. 1 chick hatched. 1 died trying to break out of the egg, and I have 3 more eggs unhatched. How long after hatching do you leave chick in incubator. And how long after hatching do you offer food and water?
 
Thanks!! Yes I will separate her and the chick when it hatches since the others arent as friendly to the chicks. I am nervous/excited!! ☺
For me it's a stressful time, so many things can go wrong. I'm always relieved when they hatch and everyone is safe. Good luck.
 
This is my first time hatching chicks in a incubator. 1 chick hatched. 1 died trying to break out of the egg, and I have 3 more eggs unhatched. How long after hatching do you leave chick in incubator. And how long after hatching do you offer food and water?
Hello, welcome to BYC. There is an incubating forum where you may find your answers. I don't use an incubator so I can't help unfortunately.
 

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