Broody hen question!

[PruittFarm]

Ok, so we just got a new hen and juvenile chicken(idk the gender), that just joined our flock.
My Easter Egger named Hawk(yes a chicken named Hawk) took a liking to the juvenile...and she has now gone broody. 2 Eggs are under her atm..

My question is what do i do when thay hatch?

Hawk is a "High Flying" hen.. meaning she loves to be a high up place.. and has chosen the nest box highest off the ground...
it is about 4.5 - 5 Feet off ground with no ramp to it.. just the roost bars next to the boxes so they can climbe up in them..

I do have a small Hutch like Coop that the high boxs sit on. The lower nest boxs are in there an that one has a ramp. It is about 2 feet off the ground, But Hawk hates it...

Once the chicks hatch how will thay get down and back up? Do i need to make a ramp to the high ones?

Sorry Obviously I am a first time chick mommie lol..

so yea any advice?

((Photo is of Hawk))

 

[PD-Riverman]

gone broody. 2 Eggs are under her atm..

My question is what do i do when thay hatch?

If 2 eggs are under her and she has been setting for a couple days or more---Mark those eggs so you can keep checking to make sure no more gets added---if they do and you do not remove them----you are allowing a staggered hatch and those Rarely ever turn out good---for you!

"""MOST""" hens and I said MOST call the babies down to the ground (they can make it for a few feet without a problem)when she is through hatching and Most will not go back up to the nest to roost because she knows the chicks can not get back, BUT you will need to check close dark for a couple days or more to make sure she is like MOST!! Good Luck!!

 

[PruittFarm]

If 2 eggs are under her and she has been setting for a couple days or more---Mark those eggs so you can keep checking to make sure no more gets added---if they do and you do not remove them----you are allowing a staggered hatch and those Rarely ever turn out good---for you!

"""MOST""" hens and I said MOST call the babies down to the ground (they can make it for a few feet without a problem)when she is through hatching and Most will not go back up to the nest to roost because she knows the chicks can not get back, BUT you will need to check close dark for a couple days or more to make sure she is like MOST!! Good Luck!!

I am alowing her to have up to 5 eggs from some of my other girls too. I got her from my friend who had her Hatch out 13 of 15 babies last year. But i will keep my eye on her
And thank you for letting me know. I alsow have marked the date on all of them

 

[PD-Riverman]

I am alowing her to have up to 5 eggs from some of my other girls too. I got her from my friend who had her Hatch out 13 of 15 babies last year. But i will keep my eye on her
And thank you for letting me know. I alsow have marked the date on all of them

OK, she is yours----but just to make sure you understand----if she has been setting on these eggs for a day or two and You allow/put more eggs under her Now/later---you allowed/created a staggered hatch----when the first 2 hatch(if they both do)----she will probably leave the nest to take care of them before any of the others hatch---which means they die or you better have a incubator ready to put them in. MOST hens are not going to continue setting for days after the first has hatched.

ALL eggs should be set/put under her at the Same time---not added days later. Good Luck

 

[PruittFarm]

She started sitting may 24th at 8 pm on one egg and then had another yesterday today i put the last one under her so she has 5 today @12pm may 26th I hope it all works out but I'm not going to make it go any further

 

[PD-Riverman]

She started sitting may 24th at 8 pm on one egg and then had another yesterday today i put the last one under her so she has 5 today @12pm may 26th I hope it all works out but I'm not going to make it go any further

Hopefully you will get lucky. You said you were a first time Momma, so a free piece of advise of what I would do( I probably had 200+ broody hens). For your next time I would collect and hold the eggs in a carton in your cool house until you get all you are planning to set under her. You can hold them with no problem for a week to 10 days---even longer if you turn them a couple times a day. You can add a couple fake eggs for her to set on if you want until you set her. Then put all the collected eggs under her at the same time---marked if she is with other hens. (If she is truly broody she is not laying any eggs at this time) Then they will ALL be due to hatch the same day---that will give you and her better luck. Good Luck

 

[Xenia's Chickens]

Glad I found this. I have a similar situation. Every time the broody hen gets up, another hen dumps a new egg into the nest, so I have to keep sorting through the eggs to remove the new ones. Sometimes, when she gets back, she sits on another egg in a different box and lets her own eggs get cold. Obviously, she is never going to have a successful brood that way. Today I tossed all the eggs (which contained a mixture of live and dead embryos of various ages) and I'm starting over. I'm not sure she is "mommy material". Should I try putting 5 or 6 marked eggs under her and collecting everything else from all the boxes several times a day, or give up on her?

 

[PD-Riverman]

Glad I found this. I have a similar situation. Every time the broody hen gets up, another hen dumps a new egg into the nest, so I have to keep sorting through the eggs to remove the new ones. Sometimes, when she gets back, she sits on another egg in a different box and lets her own eggs get cold. Obviously, she is never going to have a successful brood that way. Today I tossed all the eggs (which contained a mixture of live and dead embryos of various ages) and I'm starting over. I'm not sure she is "mommy material". Should I try putting 5 or 6 marked eggs under her and collecting everything else from all the boxes several times a day, or give up on her?

Hey, I know this can be frustrating, but let me share this with you. In 2015 ALONE I set 72 broody hens. All 72 hatched out virtually every egg, all hatched on time and I did not have to check under them for new eggs---Because ALL 72 were moved in the beginning of their Broodiness to a private hatching pen--so their is Hope if you want to set-up to do this too. In the private hatching pen there is only one nest and one chicken so getting back in the nest is no problem and no extra eggs get layed in her nest. Moving a broody has to be done correctly or some will not accept the move and it breaks their broodiness. Out of the 72 I moved in 2015 and the 80 or so in 2014 and 2013(only 3 years I kept up with them) I have not had one that did not accept the move.

If you are interested in anymore info on this, I will be glad to share what works for me.