Broody hen -fertile eggs -no hatch -now what?

[foxinachickenhouse]

Am watching my neighbors chickens. They have a new baby, and are away until the 15th. They've had a broody Java. Bird has been broody, off and on (mostly on), for months. We put some fertile eggs under her 24 days ago. The eggs were from my newly laying pullets, good sized, but still... they were the only fertile eggs available at the time. Every egg I've cracked has had a bullseye and our roo is a very busy boy, so I feel like they must have been viable. She's still on them but nothing. I have not candled, will try tonight when I go there.

At what point do I give up? And then what? Should I pull the eggs and replace them with chicks in the night? Do I pull the eggs and try to move her off? That seems like torture for the poor thing. She is just in the regular nest box and very determined. If I replace with chicks I'll have to move her, she is in an upper box. If this was my bird I would have handled all this differently, these folks are extremely overwhelmed with the new kid etc. and I'm thinking this situation has fallen to me.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Quote:
I would remove the eggs and try to break this hen's broody spell. That's way too long for her to be setting, it could be compromising her overall health. If she had just been setting for 3 weeks I would advise re-setting her with new eggs. But after all that time she needs to get back to her regularly scheduled programming.

She may fuss, but she won't suffer emotionally from the loss. Put her in a wire-bottomed cage set up on blocks or sawhorses so she can get a good breeze up under her. Give her food & water but NO bedding. Try & put her under cover but where she gets good sunlight during the day. After 3-4 days you can try to put her out with her flockmates, see if she stays out of the nest box. If she tries to return, give her another few days in the wire cage.

 

[Mahonri]

Chicks in the night, but if she doesn't accept them, then you'll have to put them in a brooder.

I've known some who say that new pullet eggs are hard to hatch.

 

[foxinachickenhouse]

One vote move her. One vote for chicks. I'm leaning toward moving her but she'll be probably be broody again in a couple of weeks. This bird is desperate. She seems to be sustaining herself but otherwise she's a crazed mess. What are the chances she won't accept the chicks? I like the cage advice but all I have for a cage is wire dog kennel, not exactly predator proof. Personally, I'd like to put her in their freezer and get them a nice pair of barred rocks from the farmer...

 

[Kittymomma]

I've had good luck fostering chicks on hens, but there is a protocol. First, do it at night! Second, make sure the chicks are under a week old and the younger you can get them the better. Third, don't freak if she pecks at them a bit at first, put them under her (not just next to her) and get the flashlight off of the nest as quick as you can. In my experience everybody goes back to sleep at that point and when they wake up they are a new little family. Another thing I do is make sure that the chicks eat and drink before putting them under the hen. As far as the broody is concerned the little ones just hatched and she may want to keep them in the nest for a day or so, that's fine for fresh hatched chicks, but if they're a few days old they'll need the food and water.

You may also want to offer some scrambled eggs or other protien rich treat. It won't hurt the chicks and will help the broody start to get back into condition. She'll eat the chick starter as well and that will also help. I don't see a problem with giving her chicks as opposed to breaking her because as soon as she has the chicks she'll start taking care of herself again along with them.

 

[foxinachickenhouse]

Thanks for the advice all. Now am wondering..should I move her to a brooding area after i introduce the chicks and they get settled like a day? or should i move her when i put the chicks under her?

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Kittymomma has great advice on getting a hen to accept chicks, and I hope it works for you & this hen. But do be prepared to care for these chicks yourself in case the hen decides she doesn't want them. And then you &/or your neighbor have to be prepared to finish raising these chicks to adulthood after the hen leaves them after 4-8 weeks or so. And also have a plan for any unwanted roosters that you might get, even if you get sexed chicks.

As for your last question, I think you'll have the most success if you can get the chicks under her right where she is, instead of stressing her by moving her first. If she accepts the chicks then you can move them all to a separate apartment.

I wish you & the hen great success!

 

[PunkinPeep]

Quote:
I agree. And i vote - give her chicks.

 

[Elwood Lightfoot]

I had the same thing with a broody hen setting for over two months a black rat snake was getting her eggs but she wouldn't give up I took 6 eggs from my incubator on day 18 and placed under her she hatched one I hatched two and placed them with her she took them in just fine and brought them all off the nest and it was a high nest I thought sure the chicks would have got hurt in the fall but the bedding in the coop floor was soft enough to break the fall, They are all doing fine still.

 

[Kittymomma]

Quote:
Agreed, I've only had one that this didn't work with but it can happen. In my case I had another broody (waited forever for one and then half the flock was trying to set eggs

) so I just stuck the chicks under the other hen. Sunny_Side_Up makes a great point about the roo chicks, we eat our extras but not everyone is comfortable with that.