Broody Hen Thread!

[Hannahs Hollow]

My Silkie's 6 Marans eggs are due to hatch tomorrow. Mix of BCM, BM, BSM, with a possible throwback to a Wheaten.

So far no signs of pipping yet (after a very quick peek), that I can tell, other than all 6 eggs look whole and well....and momma furiously protection. (Good girl!)

Funny, I still feel giddy with each hatching...part of me thinks that's silly, I've done this plenty of times before...but then I'm so glad I still feel the awe of it all. 

Can hardly wait to see fuzzy beaks in the next day or two, if all went well.   

I'll keep you all posted....hopefully my next post will be photos of new babies...and then photos to guess what colors I've got...and hopefully some hens! (Then there's waiting for that first dark egg).
Aw yes, I still feel the thrill of it all...yeah I guess I'm still hooked on my chicken addiction. :yiipchick

Lady of McCamley

Here is hoping all goes well for you. I can't wait for pics! Gawd! We're worse then youngsters with their pics of their kids aren't we?

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

Pretty bird. I've not seen Icelandic Brahma in person...I'll have to do a surf for photos.
Congratulations on your growing flock.
Lady of McCamley

It is a breed I don't quite understand. I think when they say its an old breed and very rare, they are talking about the pure bred ones. All the others like my Brahmas are really Brahmas with the Icelandic DNA. Lots also look like Sussex, RIR etc. Google Icelandic chicken pics. maybe they call them a land race fowl because they have bred everything out there! Very hard to find info that's different from the basic stuff. I don't think you could ever breed desired traits into them as you never can tell what ancestry will pop up. I don't mind. I just want a pretty and interesting happy garden flock.

 

[fisherlady]

My Silkie's 6 Marans eggs are due to hatch tomorrow. Mix of BCM, BM, BSM, with a possible throwback to a Wheaten.

So far no signs of pipping yet (after a very quick peek), that I can tell, other than all 6 eggs look whole and well....and momma furiously protection. (Good girl!)

Funny, I still feel giddy with each hatching...part of me thinks that's silly, I've done this plenty of times before...but then I'm so glad I still feel the awe of it all.

Can hardly wait to see fuzzy beaks in the next day or two, if all went well.

I'll keep you all posted....hopefully my next post will be photos of new babies...and then photos to guess what colors I've got...and hopefully some hens! (Then there's waiting for that first dark egg).
Aw yes, I still feel the thrill of it all...yeah I guess I'm still hooked on my chicken addiction.

Lady of McCamley

Totally understand!!! We are just as bad....if not worse. We got a baby monitor and hung the microphone in the broody hut so we can listen for the first peeps. We were working on a construction project in the house when Gracie was due with her last hatch. I heard the first peeps a day early and all work stopped till we went out to confirm and sure enough her first one was out on day 20 with her next two hatched within 12 hours. Our English shepherd is glued to the monitor when there are baby peeps to be heard also. That dog is totally enthralled with baby chicks!

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

Help! I think I am going broody now too!

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Update on my Marans hatching:
From quick peeks..the Momma Silkie has hatched 3 possibly 4 of the 6 eggs thus far. (Good news).

Two look to be healthy and vigorous Black Copper Marans.

I think I see one partially hatched...but not sure with the quick peek...and then 2 eggs. Can't tell how that's all progressing without actually moving and touching the eggs (which I don't do at this stage...best to let mom do her job). Will know in the morning.

Bad news, one of the chicks must have died shortly after hatching. Momma Silkie had drug it away from the nest along with its shell. The chick appears to have died from omphalitis (infection that sets in on an unclosed or malformed naval...sometimes called "squishy chick" disease)....bummer...from its feather coloring I think it was a blue splash (double bummer).

After some research, the only way to try to prevent omphalitis during a hatch (as sometimes an unclosed naval will close within a couple of hours as the chick dries therefore protecting it from the germs in the environment) would be to have immaculate hygiene within the incubator...I'm not sure that is possible within a broody hen environment.(Anyone care to comment on that???)

As I always try to learn with each hatch, and I will share my thoughts here so those interested on this thread can learn with me, I think I could always be sure momma has enough room to relieve herself away from the nest box....I was working more closely than normal this time as the other half of my broody hutch was blocked off...I had used it briefly as a holding pen to move some birds out one day and got busy and didn't take the barricade down...and hatch day arrived. I kept mom blocked in one nest box (a BIG nest box, enough for food, water, stretch her legs, and then hold a wooden insert for the nest). But mom was often relieving on the side of the nest box insert, and sometimes into the nest box insert by the eggs. I was faithfully removing the mess every day, but that would have definitely made things "dirtier." Having the ability to leave that little "room" might have encouraged her to relieve outside the container.

But I notice broodies often mess inside the nest even if they have access to a full run; I just don't remember if my Silkie is one of my neater ones or not (I failed to write that down in my notes on her....I remember my Welsummer/RIR is a messy mom, just don't remember if my Silkie is too.) So, next time I will be sure my Silkie has access to the run for relief and see if that keeps things tidier...or if she is just a messier mom and thus I'll have to try to help her keep her nest cleaner....although she instinctively knew to drag the dead chick AND shell away from the others hatching.

Likely there was nothing to be done as the chick simply had a malformed naval which makes it ripe for internal infection even in clean standards...the bacteria from the environment grows very quickly within the remaining yolk that has been drawn into the body at the internal temperature of the chick...one of the facts of hatching chicks.

I will post more tomorrow for hopefully a final tally...and hopefully a photo...didn't want to take pictures today as that would have disturbed mom too much during this delicate stage. She was mad enough at my quick look.

But hey...2 BCM thus far!

Lady of McCamley

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

Congratulations Lady and silkie! Looking towards to pics and maybe one or both of the remaining eggs will be your splash!

 

[glebreton]

Congratulations Lady! Looks like you will have some chocolate colored eggs in your future! Hope the rest of the clutch fares well...

 

[theadvocate19]

Now you see her....

Now you don't...

This was our first glimpse of her in exactly a week! Had no idea where she had been, let alone sitting on a clutch of eggs. And I thought polish weren't known to go broody. ..

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Photos!
So far 3 vigorous Black Copper Marans (not seeing any blue shade, so pretty sure all of them are black), one is hatching (looks to be a black again), and one egg has no signs of hatch yet...and then of course the splash I lost at hatch due to malformity.

Hopefully I'll have a couple of girls out of this for those lovely dark brown eggs. (Parents were 4 to 5 on Marans scale). What I gave up in depth of color I made up for in productivity (darker usually means less productive).

Momma and babies are doing fine. Post more when final hatch count is in.

 

[fisherlady]

Photos!
So far 3 vigorous Black Copper Marans (not seeing any blue shade, so pretty sure all of them are black), one is hatching (looks to be a black again), and one egg has no signs of hatch yet...and then of course the splash I lost at hatch due to malformity.

Hopefully I'll have a couple of girls out of this for those lovely dark brown eggs. (Parents were 4 to 5 on Marans scale). What I gave up in depth of color I made up for in productivity (darker usually means less productive).

Momma and babies are doing fine. Post more when final hatch count is in.

They are adorable! Congrats!!