Broody Hen Thread!

[the poppster]

Do you have a picture of the tractor?

it's packed away in the snow behind my garage right now, but as soon as I can, I will post a picture of my broodys chicken tractor.

 

[n3kms]

Got my daughter's little silkie moved to my broody coop then the next night put 5 Black Java eggs under her. She ate one small bite of food the next day and none the next. I wouldn't have worried but it is so cold and she is so small. So this morning I took her out some fresh food. I put it in her face and she took a bite. Then I moved it out of her reach and took her off the nest and put her by the food. She started eating. I left her and when I checked this afternoon she had moved all the eggs to where she was next to the food and was sitting on them. I had her in a dishpan with the side cut out. I had piled up pine shavings around it for warmth. Should I just leave her be or move her back to the dishpan?

 

[Alex1010]

Got my daughter's little silkie moved to my broody coop then the next night put 5 Black Java eggs under her. She ate one small bite of food the next day and none the next. I wouldn't have worried but it is so cold and she is so small. So this morning I took her out some fresh food. I put it in her face and she took a bite. Then I moved it out of her reach and took her off the nest and put her by the food. She started eating. I left her and when I checked this afternoon she had moved all the eggs to where she was next to the food and was sitting on them. I had her in a dishpan with the side cut out. I had piled up pine shavings around it for warmth. Should I just leave her be or move her back to the dishpan?

Leave her she knows what she's doing

 

[PD-Riverman]

Got my daughter's little silkie moved to my broody coop then the next night put 5 Black Java eggs under her. She ate one small bite of food the next day and none the next. I wouldn't have worried but it is so cold and she is so small. So this morning I took her out some fresh food. I put it in her face and she took a bite. Then I moved it out of her reach and took her off the nest and put her by the food. She started eating. I left her and when I checked this afternoon she had moved all the eggs to where she was next to the food and was sitting on them. I had her in a dishpan with the side cut out. I had piled up pine shavings around it for warmth. Should I just leave her be or move her back to the dishpan?

I would put her back in the pan turning the side thats cut out towards the wall---put her food and water away from her so she has to get off the nest to get to it---then Leave her alone----she will be OK----No hand feeding her. Feeding her causes her to have to poop more, so she either poops in the nest(Mess) or has to get off the nest which she might not want to do. I promice you that she will be OK----Just leave her alone.

 

[microchick]

Leave her she knows what she's doing

X2.

Today is day 7 for our Buff O hen. When she went broody last week we were having a week of mild Feb weather with temps in the 50s and low 60s. Last night it went down to 6. I went out and wrapped their nesting boxes in cardboard and checking her water and food twice a day. Aggie has only been off her nest the last few days long enough to eat and drink I suspect. Am I concerned about her? Yep, but next week the temps are supposed to be mild again and I'm counting on her knowing what she is doing even though this is her first brood.

 

[sharol]

Quote:
I would add to be sure there are plenty of shavings between her eggs and the floor.

 

[n3kms]

Leave her she knows what she's doing

I would put her back in the pan turning the side thats cut out towards the wall---put her food and water away from her so she has to get off the nest to get to it---then Leave her alone----she will be OK----No hand feeding her. Feeding her causes her to have to poop more, so she either poops in the nest(Mess) or has to get off the nest which she might not want to do. I promice you that she will be OK----Just leave her alone.

Quote:
I would add to be sure there are plenty of shavings between her eggs and the floor.

Thanks for the advice. I pondered. I've used that coop 4 times for this purpose but not with a tiny, timid silkie. And not in the winter. Probably wouldn't have worried about her being near the food if I hadn't had an experienced broody poop in the nest once. I gave her a bite so she would know it was her food then put it out of her reach. Couldn't believe she moved the eggs. I decided that moving her back to the dishpan made it even easier for her to cover the eggs and makes her have to get up to eat and adds extra layers between eggs and cold underneath. If she moves them again I guess I'll leave her be. She is getting a little more spunky about being messed with, I was glad to see that.

 

[sharol]

Thanks for the advice. I pondered. I've used that coop 4 times for this purpose but not with a tiny, timid silkie. And not in the winter. Probably wouldn't have worried about her being near the food if I hadn't had an experienced broody poop in the nest once. I gave her a bite so she would know it was her food then put it out of her reach. Couldn't believe she moved the eggs. I decided that moving her back to the dishpan made it even easier for her to cover the eggs and makes her have to get up to eat and adds extra layers between eggs and cold underneath. If she moves them again I guess I'll leave her be. She is getting a little more spunky about being messed with, I was glad to see that.

Sounds like a plan. Worst case, you could move the food closer to her nest in the dishpan. Good luck. I have a tiny little Araucana with two 2 week old chicks (one gray Breda Fowl and one Jubilee Orpington) that did almost the same thing. She's a great mama, but the weather has been awful -- cold and windy (I'm in Kansas). I didn't dream any of the eggs would hatch, but she was determined. I had to clean poop out of the nest the last day as the eggs were pipping. She wasn't going ANYWHERE. She seemed pleased to have the mess gone, but I wish I had had gloves on. Yuck.

 

[PD-Riverman]

I gave her a bite so she would know it was her food then put it out of her reach.

Its OK----LOL. She is"Yours" and you can feed her if you want!!! I set 60+ last year and Never had one to poop in the nest. I never do 2 things while they are setting-----1, no food close to her nest, 2 NO Treats that would temp her into coming off the nest. If you set a Big Nice Grilled Steak on the side table out of my reach and I am Bed Bound for some reason------I am probably going to hurt myself trying to get out the bed to get it----LOL---In other words I am going to get out the bed to get it even though I shouldn't. She might leave her hatching eggs---that are hatching to get her treat which would not be good!! Good Luck

 

[microchick]

Day 8 here and I couldn't resist trying to candle a few eggs. The temps are up some so I went in the coop, blocked all the light coming in, carefully fished out an egg and luckily got a light pink/tan Buff O egg that was numbered and not donated. DH made a simple hand held LED flashlight candler for me. It's working very well and the first egg I could clearly see a little pulsing, moving embryo. I checked 6 eggs in all. In four I could see definite signs of life, one was a dark Welly egg that I set and stared at for a minute mumbling to myself that there had to be something somewhere in that big dark area that I could call an embryo. Honestly the egg was so dark brown that I guess it will be a surprise baby if it hatches. I saw one egg that looked like it may be infertile. No sign of anything. No air pocket, no dark area hiding a fetus, nothing. It was a Welsummer egg. The only one I saw that made me say 'oh oh there's a problem' was one Welsummer egg that looked like it had the start of a blood line. I'm no expert. This is my first attempt at candling so I'm going to give it 4 more days and check it again. If the line is more pronounced I'll pull it then. I've been wondering if the Welly hens were getting attention from the boys as much as the Buffs are. There must be something about those fluffy bums that the boys just love, lol.

Aggie is being a sweetheart. Such a good little momma. She scolded me a bit when I fished out an egg from under her, watched me like a hawk as I candled, making sure to keep the egg in her nesting box. When I laid the egg down at her breast she busily shuffled it back under her and let me pick another. To have their trust is such an awesome feeling.

One week down two to go. We are looking at the weekend of the 28th for hatching. So nice to have something so pleasant as new life to look forward to seeing as we wait out the end of winter and the start of spring.

Plan b is if none of the eggs hatch, God Forbid, DH pointed out that Orschelns is getting their chicks in on the 28th and if worse comes to worse we will stuff some babies under her. She deserves a family as diligent as she has been with these eggs.