Over_Easy47
Songster
How can I move my broody hen and all her eggs under her to a secluded area? She has her wings up and mouth open, of course doesn't want to be bothered. Once I move her will it bother her that my hands have touched the eggs?
Broody chicken help
- Thread starter Over_Easy47
- Start date
I moved my broody hen out of the nest box and into the built in brooder in my coop. When I removed her from her nest to go act like a normal chicken for a 1/2 hour or so, when she came back, she flew back up to the nest box and I had to remove her and show her where her nest had been moved to. I had to do this 3 times before she would reliably go back to her nest. Now everything is running smoothly.
I say move her. If she is a biter, put gloves on. Mine just puffs up and growls.
Why move her? Some folks move their broody's. I don't. Any attempt at moving before hatch is in swing means my gals will pace and break to get back to their original spot. Some folks are successful though so it all depends on the individual hen. My broody's hatch and raise their young with the flock or not at all.
She doesn't care about you having touched the eggs. And it's a myth that birds will reject their (fallen) young if you touch and return them to their nest... probably perpetuated by parents to make kids leave nests alone.
If you leave her with the flock, it is important to mark all her eggs and collect fresh deposits nightly as other hens will try to take advantage of her, but staggered hatch is not desirable or advisable.
Happy hatching!
She doesn't care about you having touched the eggs. And it's a myth that birds will reject their (fallen) young if you touch and return them to their nest... probably perpetuated by parents to make kids leave nests alone.
If you leave her with the flock, it is important to mark all her eggs and collect fresh deposits nightly as other hens will try to take advantage of her, but staggered hatch is not desirable or advisable.
Happy hatching!
How long has she been setting?
Is it really hot where you live?
How can I move my broody hen and all her eggs under her to a secluded area?
Prepare a pen that she cannot escape and no other chicken can get in. It should be predator proof or in a predator proof area and where it does not become an oven because of the sun. The pen needs to contain a nest, food, water, and a little room for her to go poop, but not much more than that. The hen should instinctively know to not poop in her nest but that does not carry over to her food and water so give yourself access so it's easy to clean. I find it works better if the nest is kind of dark.
Move her and her eggs at night after it is dark with as little light and commotion as you can. The risk is that she will not accept the move and will break from being broody. People move broody hens all the time. most are successful. But some hens just won't accept the move. If you are going to move one it's best to relocate her before you give her the eggs you want her to hatch in case she rejects the move but that is not where you are.
To me an additional risk is that you build the pen in a way that the baby chicks can get away from the broody hen's protection. If she can't get to them to protect them then they are at risk. So fix the pen in a way that the baby chicks cannot get out.
She has her wings up and mouth open, of course doesn't want to be bothered.
Of course, sounds like a good mother. Most don't, but some can peck hard enough to draw blood. Claws can be a weapon too though these seldom come into play. How badly do you want to move her? Realistically though, most of the time it's not that big of an issue. A peck can hurt but they seldom injure. A lot of mine don't even peck though they threaten or they only peck once or twice. Long sleeves can help. If you wear gloves make sure they are not so clumsy that you drop the eggs. She is less likely to be that defensive if you move her in the dark. The fear is often much worse than just doing it.
Once I move her will it bother her that my hands have touched the eggs?
No it will not bother the hen.
Your hands need to be clean and not oily. The egg has a layer on it called bloom. That bloom helps stop bacteria from entering the porous egg shell and turning it into an oozing stinking mess. You don't want to compromise that bloom. It has nothing to do with the hen rejecting the eggs because you touched them, decent sanitation should be practiced when you are handling eggs whether for an incubator r under a broody hen.
Prepare a pen that she cannot escape and no other chicken can get in. It should be predator proof or in a predator proof area and where it does not become an oven because of the sun. The pen needs to contain a nest, food, water, and a little room for her to go poop, but not much more than that. The hen should instinctively know to not poop in her nest but that does not carry over to her food and water so give yourself access so it's easy to clean. I find it works better if the nest is kind of dark.
Move her and her eggs at night after it is dark with as little light and commotion as you can. The risk is that she will not accept the move and will break from being broody. People move broody hens all the time. most are successful. But some hens just won't accept the move. If you are going to move one it's best to relocate her before you give her the eggs you want her to hatch in case she rejects the move but that is not where you are.
To me an additional risk is that you build the pen in a way that the baby chicks can get away from the broody hen's protection. If she can't get to them to protect them then they are at risk. So fix the pen in a way that the baby chicks cannot get out.
She has her wings up and mouth open, of course doesn't want to be bothered.
Of course, sounds like a good mother. Most don't, but some can peck hard enough to draw blood. Claws can be a weapon too though these seldom come into play. How badly do you want to move her? Realistically though, most of the time it's not that big of an issue. A peck can hurt but they seldom injure. A lot of mine don't even peck though they threaten or they only peck once or twice. Long sleeves can help. If you wear gloves make sure they are not so clumsy that you drop the eggs. She is less likely to be that defensive if you move her in the dark. The fear is often much worse than just doing it.
Once I move her will it bother her that my hands have touched the eggs?
No it will not bother the hen.
Your hands need to be clean and not oily. The egg has a layer on it called bloom. That bloom helps stop bacteria from entering the porous egg shell and turning it into an oozing stinking mess. You don't want to compromise that bloom. It has nothing to do with the hen rejecting the eggs because you touched them, decent sanitation should be practiced when you are handling eggs whether for an incubator r under a broody hen.
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