Broody Hen Thread!

[Dumb Kluck]

I need some advice. My BO has gone broody for the 4th time this spring.

I am an urban chicken keeper, and don't have room for more, nor do I have a place for her to brood where the chicks would be safe from the other 3 hens. I was thinking of getting some fertile eggs and letting her brood them, and give them away, but the logistics of doing this because of limited space and differing feed requirements I don't think would allow it. I'd hate to let her brood and hatch and have the others kill the chicks at the first opportunity. She is a sweet hen, I plucked her off the nest this evening and she sat in my arms and clucked and purred. I even wondered if I could get chicks at the feed store and put them under her, but the situation remains the same. I do have a small green house, but it's heating up and would be pretty hot in there, plus not very secure.


Another option is to give her to someone that has a rooster, and find another EE to replace the BO but then you have the integration problems with a fixed flock. I really don't know what to do. My other hens are 2 EE's and a RIR. Any suggestions?

I'd put eggs under her & start convincing friends/family that they should have a few chickens too but I'm crazy like that... MAYBE someone with fertile eggs & no broody will let your broody hatch some of their eggs for them, then you can send em back a few weeks after the hatch!? All cuteness of chicks and none of the long term responsibility! Good luck!

 

[pegm]

Hmmmmm, now that's an idea worth considering. My biggest issue is room.

 

[fisherlady]

Today was Day 12 for 11 of my eggs and Day 11 for 2 of the eggs. Since my broody had gone off the nest on Day 5 for 3 hrs, I decided to candle the eggs tonight. All 13 have developed but I could not find a well defined air sac in one (well its a chocolate colored egg so no wonder I can't see well) and another one seems a little behind for Day 12.

Is it safe to candle one more time on Day 18? Also right now she is in a dog cage in the coop. I was planning to move her to another coop close to hatch. Is that a bad idea? Shall I wait till the chicks hatch and just some cardboard all around the cage so chicks don't wander out?

Yes it is safe to candle again, though I try to do it in a way that doesn't upset the hen too much... usually I remove a hen from the nest to do her daily business (and get some treats from the dish) and quickly do a candle right there while she is off of the nest. But I only candle for basically solid air cells, I don't even try to determine any other details. I just check for sloshy eggs (as I call them) so I can pull them and allow more room in the nest.

I would wait till after chicks hatch to do any more moving. Every time you move the broody's nest you increase the risk of causing her to become stressed and even deserting the nest. Your idea to line the bottom of the cage with cardboard should do just fine for a day or two after the hatch. Once the chicks hatch the broodies normally can be moved much, much easier.

 

[fisherlady]

I'd put eggs under her & start convincing friends/family that they should have a few chickens too but I'm crazy like that... MAYBE someone with fertile eggs & no broody will let your broody hatch some of their eggs for them, then you can send em back a few weeks after the hatch!? All cuteness of chicks and none of the long term responsibility! Good luck!

This is a great idea for this situation.... in fact we are in the process of doing this exact thing. We are on broody #13 for the spring. We certainly don't need any more chicks of our own, so we are hatching out a dozen eggs for someone who couldn't find chicks of a particular breed he wanted. We get to let our broody do her thing, we get to enjoy the fuzzy butts for 6 weeks or so and then we can hand them over to our friend. Win for the broody, us and our friend! LOL

Hmmmmm, now that's an idea worth considering. My biggest issue is room.

If you can find someone who wants the chicks as 6 weeks old then you just need 'temporary room' so to speak. Temporary broody quarters can be made out of dog kennels, cat carriers (some of my hen's favorite places to spend their broody time) or rabbit hutches. 4 pallets tied together at the corners with a wire top over it and some chicken wire or hardware cloth around the base can create a quick coop for a few weeks stay. I even eye up the kids' plastic playground houses and swing sets and wonder... how could I make that into a chicken tractor??? So if it is only a temporary set up, then let your imagination roam around your house, garage and yard and you'll be amazed at what you may come up with.

.... how is this for repurposing... we took a small fridge wire shelf and 2 cup hooks and created a safe 'door' for one of the nest boxes that a broody was using. She was being bothered by other hens, and was cooperative about us letting her out for scratching time, so we just hung the shelf over the front of the nest box area by the 2 cup hooks. Easy to take off or put on and worked perfect for providing her peace and quiet.

Wire grate shelves like the type used in fridges, freezers or grills often can become great assets in the coop... just add zip ties or bread ties or cup hooks and you have instant doors or dividers...

 

[Dumb Kluck]

Quote:
Originally Posted by pegm


Hmmmmm, now that's an idea worth considering. My biggest issue is room.

My broody has a dog crate style cage inside the big run since she decided to nest outside the coop on the floor of the run. I lined the bottom w/cardboard & shavings, the sides with shade screen cloth and it should hold them for a few days, meanwhile mom could get in out to mingle with the flock once a day and everyone is accustomed to the whole nesting & babies thing (the other girls were standing by watching throughout the hatch). But I'm in no position to advise, I only wanted five chickens, three weeks later I had 3 more, one of which went broody about 2 dozen eggs into her laying career so I tucked a clutch of fertile eggs under her LOL...
between mid March and the first of June I went from 5 to 16 birds and the last egg is chirping a little.
One little loner rescue bird lives in my garden & has her own little nighttime box, the rest all kick it in the coop, run & day run areas together. Maybe you could sell or trade the broody if you don't want or need a chick hatchin' factory LOL, but I'd be very tempted to let her hatch other peoples eggs for them.

 

[pcosmom]

Hi I'm Jennifer and I have first broody.. She started showing signs about a week ago and for sure Saturday.. My other hens where laying on top of and all around her. I decided to move her and she had 36 eggs 0-0.. I moved her into my brooder and at first gave her 12 eggs and put 18 in my bator..
Then I changed my mind and instead gave her my 17 guinea eggs .

Not only is this my first broody but my first hatch in the bator. ( not expecting much) untried candling them tonight and I have some with veining and some with nothing yet .. Can I attempt a stacked hatch as my first????

 

[LisaLouHoo]

Hmmmmm, now that's an idea worth considering. My biggest issue is room.

Or you could read up on this forum on how to break a broody. It might be your best bet for your situation. I would be tempted, too.

 

[ocap]

I need some advice. My BO has gone broody for the 4th time this spring.

I am an urban chicken keeper, and don't have room for more, nor do I have a place for her to brood where the chicks would be safe from the other 3 hens. I was thinking of getting some fertile eggs and letting her brood them, and give them away, but the logistics of doing this because of limited space and differing feed requirements I don't think would allow it. I'd hate to let her brood and hatch and have the others kill the chicks at the first opportunity. She is a sweet hen, I plucked her off the nest this evening and she sat in my arms and clucked and purred. I even wondered if I could get chicks at the feed store and put them under her, but the situation remains the same. I do have a small green house, but it's heating up and would be pretty hot in there, plus not very secure.


Another option is to give her to someone that has a rooster, and find another EE to replace the BO but then you have the integration problems with a fixed flock. I really don't know what to do. My other hens are 2 EE's and a RIR. Any suggestions?

someone needs a broody like this and will give you some cash, put on a high price and advertise her on craig's list

 

[sonderah]

someone needs a broody like this and will give you some cash, put on a high price and advertise her on craig's list

I'd pay a good $30 for her!!! Lol Love Broody's!

 

[BLT79]

Today is day 21. Heard chirping under mamas last night. Keep going out there today, but I don't see any chicks out from under her. Too afraid to move the hens after yesterdays episode. Now the one we brought in yesterday has made it so far and detached from the shell this morning. I got her to drink some water and wiped her clean with some warm water. She is under a heat lamp as well. Still getting the hang of walking around. She appears smaller than the one I found in the coop that didn't make it yesterday. What do I do now with this little one? How do I know if anymore have hatched?