Broody Hen Thread!

[Huggerlady]

It's day 20 or 21 and more than a few eggs have broken from spoiling or she broke them. I was out of town and hubby cleaned it out once but today another rotten mess. Awful smelly as there are growing eggs with smelly egg pieces and feathers stuck on them. Can I wash these eggs or just leave them. I am so anxious for chicks, I believe there are at least 4 doing really good but some are real hard to tell being darker maran eggs. Hoping for 6/12, I think there's 8 left. She's a super sweet speckled sussex.

 

[szczur]

Day 19 for my welsummer and I hear PEEPING!! I am so excited!! She is sitting on 7 and they all developed on Day 18! She got up on her own this morning for me to let her out, so I did. (i've had to carry her outside to go or she wouldn't) I taped a big cardboard box to the end of the dog crate to extend her space, so hopefully she won't poop all over her babies, because I don't want to carry her out of the garage again after hatch! Hoping for a good hatch

and not a homicidal broody

 

[16 paws]

Microchick and who ever else is following along.....
Here is a picture of my blind chick Chicken Little
I wanted to tell you that I opened the other eye and she still doesnt seem to be able to see. I am still hoping maybe she has some sort of nerve damage and it will come back. Wishful thinking I know but you never know. Someone said her head looks malformed but she is beautiful to me.

Chicken Little


I think she is getting in some frizzle feathers, one of her hatch mates is feathing out frizzled.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

I have really messed up. I had 2 first time broodies in my English Orpington coop that were setting on eggs. I had written down that they were set to hatch this coming weekend, but last Saturday, my white hen hatched out 4 little Jubilee chicks. The Mottle (the other broodie) went completely nuts, came off her nest and tried to steal the baby chicks. In the process, two of them were killed. I isolated the mottle, but she had lost interest in her own eggs, so I stuck them in the incubator. I thought I had written down the wrong date since as I remember it, the two were set within a day of each other. The white is doing fine with the remaining 2 chicks in the coop with the flock.

No chicks from the mottle's eggs, so this morning I was going to pitch them. I candled them (after having them in lock down mode with high humidity and not moving them for 5 days) and they are all showing movement and life.

Now I don't know what to do. I guess I'll keep the humidity up since the movement appears to be in the area of the air cell, and all the cells are large and well defined.

Experts out there: Other than not leaving two broodies with similar hatch dates next to each other (duh), any suggestions on these eggs?

Oh, and I have two experienced broodies in the same coop due next week. Sigh. The two that are still setting usually raise their chicks together, and I'm hoping to move them into a different protected area once their respective hatches start. They have moved well in the past at that point.

Keep watching the eggs...sometimes you just never know. You may get some hatched yet. At some point, if nothing has happened, you may have to do a float test or crack open one that seems least vulnerable. Sometimes I've seen movement that wasn't chick but actually putrification moving.

As to the other two experienced hens, let them do their business. Move after hatch.

Some hens brood well together. Others do not. Life lessons are hard when it comes to managing living creatures. It happens.

LofMc

 

[microchick]

16 paws she is a doll. You've done a marvelous job with her. Strange that she is keeping that remaining eye clamped shut even though it doesn't appear injured.

I forgot to mention. I'm having a terrible time convincing Aggie that she needs to get off her nest. The weather is warm and I fear she isn't drinking enough water. This morning I held her water dish in front of her and she took four good beak fulls for me. Tomorrow I'm moving the rest of the flock to their new coop so she will have the old coop to herself. Hopefully she will relax a bit with all the hubbub lessened.

 

[PD-Riverman]

It's day 20 or 21 and more than a few eggs have broken from spoiling or she broke them. I was out of town and hubby cleaned it out once but today another rotten mess. Awful smelly as there are growing eggs with smelly egg pieces and feathers stuck on them. Can I wash these eggs or just leave them. I am so anxious for chicks, I believe there are at least 4 doing really good but some are real hard to tell being darker maran eggs. Hoping for 6/12, I think there's 8 left. She's a super sweet speckled sussex.

I would not wash them----Take out what you can from busted eggs, then Hands Off. "I" never bother my hens at hatch time. Good Luck

 

[PD-Riverman]

Huggerlady, The rotten eggs might effect the hatch, but its time to hatch and messing with them during that time can effect the hatch. You mentioned candling them so I figured you had already removed the bad eggs. How did she get so many bad eggs? Were the eggs Fresh when you set(put the eggs under her)her? I have set hundreds of broody hens and have never had busting, rotten, eggs etc, so I am telling you what I would do "If" I did----I have No experience in several busted eggs under a broody. I just Know during the Hatch---I would Not even peek under her----but you have a problem so I am thinking get the busted eggs out and let her try and hatch. If you feel you should take the eggs and wash them as well as her and change the bedding-----she is your hen---do what you feel you need to do. Again I am curious about the eggs when you set her 21 days ago..

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Yay, finally...in the broody hutch...I've got one little Cream Legbar/Barnevelder girl hatched out today....nice crisp black triangle on the head...no white dot. I saw she had pipped this morning. Now this evening she is nicely fluffed, still a little wobbly, but tucked snug under Mimsy.

And the 2nd egg I set with that batch is making a lot of noises...hopefully I'll have another little CL/Barnevelder girl by morning. Rosie is tending her.

Broody co-mommas again....my 2 mop heads...Rosie and Mimsy (bantam Cochins who have more fluff than stuff in their heads). Mimsy was still sitting after the rescue baby went to the Silkie...so I set her with two more eggs....then Rosie decided to join about a week ago. They did well enough on their last co-brood.

Silkie is mothering the CL/Barnevelder rescue hatch that Olive abandoned (in egg) when she took over the hatched babe the Splash abandoned at 1 week of age....the 2nd boy....whose about 3 weeks now???? I'm just waiting for the comb, but I'm sure its coming as that one has a nice head dot.

The first CL/Barnie boy has a nice pink comb and is a full flock member roosting with the big girls (and pappa). Trying to rehome him with not much luck thus far.

AND.....I have 2 large girls broody in the main hutch again. My Splash again (darn....I wanted to hatch her eggs this next round for the Blue Laced darker layer she'd produce with the Barnevelder....was going to set the very next batch with Rosie once she settled....figures that I just sold the last unrefrigerated Splash/Barnevelder fertile eggs for hatching as I didn't think she'd brood for awhile...then she went broody before I got any more! Then the next day a Rhodebar went broody in the main coop. I've got the Rhodebar sitting on 2 Cl/Barnevelder eggs...those clumsy girls broke the other two I had set during a tussle for the nest while the Rhodebar decided to go broody. I plan to use the Rhodebar but gently break Splash as she is still a bit skinny from the last brood....Splash keeps finding herself tossed out of the coop and no eggs in her nest.

So I do not lack for broodies and chick clutches at this point in time...still working small clutches...as good grief...I already have more chickens than I need...and I AM HATCHING MORE!

But I've got to get those egg colors...and the plummage....please, please, a pretty Blue Laced......and...oh look...the sex linking IS working....a few more hatches to make sure.

@microchick H.E.L.P!

LofMc

 

[fisherlady]

Yay, finally...in the broody hutch...I've got one little Cream Legbar/Barnevelder girl hatched out today....nice crisp black triangle on the head...no white dot. I saw she had pipped this morning. Now this evening she is nicely fluffed, still a little wobbly, but tucked snug under Mimsy.

And the 2nd egg I set with that batch is making a lot of noises...hopefully I'll have another little CL/Barnevelder girl by morning. Rosie is tending her.

Broody co-mommas again....my 2 mop heads...Rosie and Mimsy (bantam Cochins who have more fluff than stuff in their heads). Mimsy was still sitting after the rescue baby went to the Silkie...so I set her with two more eggs....then Rosie decided to join about a week ago. They did well enough on their last co-brood.

Silkie is mothering the CL/Barnevelder rescue hatch that Olive abandoned (in egg) when she took over the hatched babe the Splash abandoned at 1 week of age....the 2nd boy....whose about 3 weeks now???? I'm just waiting for the comb, but I'm sure its coming as that one has a nice head dot.

The first CL/Barnie boy has a nice pink comb and is a full flock member roosting with the big girls (and pappa). Trying to rehome him with not much luck thus far.

AND.....I have 2 large girls broody in the main hutch again.  My Splash again (darn....I wanted to hatch her eggs this next round for the Blue Laced darker layer she'd produce with the Barnevelder....was going to set the very next batch with Rosie once she settled....figures that I just sold the last unrefrigerated Splash/Barnevelder fertile eggs for hatching as I didn't think she'd brood for awhile...then she went broody before I got any more!  Then the next day a Rhodebar went broody in the main coop.  I've got the Rhodebar sitting on 2 Cl/Barnevelder eggs...those clumsy girls broke the other two I had set during a tussle for the nest while the Rhodebar decided to go broody. I plan to use the Rhodebar but gently break Splash as she is still a bit skinny from the last brood....Splash keeps finding herself tossed out of the coop and no eggs in her nest.

So I do not lack for broodies and chick clutches at this point in time...still working small clutches...as good grief...I already have more chickens than I need...and I AM HATCHING MORE! 

But I've got to get those egg colors...and the plummage....please, please, a pretty Blue Laced......and...oh look...the sex linking IS working....a few more hatches to make sure.

@microchick
 H.E.L.P!  

LofMc

This is awesome! I am so glad the brooding is picking up for you in frequency and in effectiveness....now to decide on your next project? More egg colors? A different sex linked breeding? Body size for duel purpose? Lots of things to keep you head and the broody's fluffy butts busy with! LOL

 

[microchick]

Yeah, Lady of McCamly, glad to know it's contagious and I am not the only chicken owner suffering from this ailment.

I almost have the new coop done. Just one small area to tin, build the roost bars, secure one window and I am good to go.

Of course my 2nd broody set on her eggs for a day and a half then decided that if she was on the nest she couldn't compete for treats with the other hens and broke herself.

Aggie is on day 5 today. The little moron got off her nest yesterday, finally, only to escape her broody cage (still trying to figure out how she squeezed through a two inch opening in the pen) and wound up on the nest next to her sitting happily on three eggs. I promptly fixed the cage, plopped her butt back on her own eggs (no idea how long she was off the nest. Eggs were cool but it was 82º outside yesterday) did a quick spot candling and saw movement in two.

This is the 2nd time the little air head has done this. I thought I had her secured, but then I wasn't counting on her being a Houdini Bird. I mean, how hard can it be to turn around and find your own eggs? Or do they really get that spacey mentally when they brood?