Broody Hen Thread!

[sonderah]

I have a bs turkey with babies about 6-7 weeks old, and an RP turkey who just hatches babies Monday. They have 2 separate nests that they r using, but yesterday I found one of the 6 week old babies dead in the RP hens nest!!! Idk if it just died, or if she killed it! So I locked her and her babies in for the rest of yesterday & last night to keep the others from going to visit! But I can't keep them locked up forever. The older babies had all been in and out of her nest visiting and she seemed fine with it, so idk what to think!!!!

 

[fisherlady]

I have a bs turkey with babies about 6-7 weeks old, and an RP turkey who just hatches babies Monday. They have 2 separate nests that they r using, but yesterday I found one of the 6 week old babies dead in the RP hens nest!!! Idk if it just died, or if she killed it! So I locked her and her babies in for the rest of yesterday & last night to keep the others from going to visit! But I can't keep them locked up forever. The older babies had all been in and out of her nest visiting and she seemed fine with it, so idk what to think!!!!

Unfortunately it sounds like your broody isn't as tolerant of the visitors now that she is covering babies and not just eggs.... you may have to separate them for a few days, then allow them to interact in a free ranging situation so the 6 week olds will learn that the RP hen is no longer happy to have them around. By free ranging them together (under careful supervision) it allows them to escape when the RP hen tells them to 'GIT'

 

[Gardenlady2]

I have a broody Welsummer!!!! She is 8 months old and started sitting about a week ago, but I didn't realize what she was doing and kept taking the eggs from under her. Yesterday I found her back in the same box sitting on two eggs. When I tried to move her she made the saddest sounds! So I gave her 2 more eggs and marked all 4 of them. She turned them over with her beak and sat back down. It's so neat to see!!! I saw her come out and forage for a few minutes in the afternoon and then right back to her nest. This morning I took her breakfast in bed . She's from my first batch of chicks and I'm so excited to see if she can hatch these eggs!

 

[Dumb Kluck]

My broody has turned out to be the sweetest mom! Except when one of the other girls comes near, even her best friend hen... then it looks like a cock fight goin' down! If any adult hens enter the 6x13 run that the 2x4' brood pen is located within then there is going to be a fight.:/
Granted, I had planned on using the 6x13 run as a isolation run for feeding chick starter to the new recruits, so I can feed layer crumble to the laying hens in the 1000sqft day run (which is not exactly secure, it just happens to contain the birds reasonably well because they haven't figured out that their wings have grown back (yet). I've created a temporary day use rear entrance to the hen house & nestboxes & at night I close the broody pen and let the big girls back into the secure run & coop for the night.

Momma hen was a lil badass as a pullet, I told my husband that she would be ruling the roost in no time. The first couple of days with the flock she schooled our big male cat about whose yogurt treat he was checking out (while the other hens stood back and watched), and stood up to hens twice her size without batting an eye so I expect she will do a fine job of protecting her chicks, but 9 seems like a lot of cuteness to keep track of !
Today I am getting a load of rock crusher dust (sandy remnants of crushed rock bits) to fill the 6x13 run a few inches deep... but first I have to pull all the straw I put in there a few months ago :/ I'm thinking that If I lay a few cinder blocks on their sides & maybe a milk-crate upside down at strategic points in the run(s), that the little chicks can have hiding places from the crabby old hens while they learn some integration skills.

 

[BLT79]

Day 23. I just moved one of the moms, 5 eggs under her and I didn't see any pips. What now?

 

[joannefiddler]

Hi all. I have a broody Cochin who had 6 eggs under her that were laid over a 2 day period. Tuesday 6/3 in the afternoon I witnessed 2 chicks. Wednesday afternoon 2 more witnessed (they are different colors). I am out of town and have friend taking care of them. No evidence that mom has left nest yet. Do I have her inspect under mom and remove any eggs that haven't hatched or will mom leave them and start showing the chicks the food and water in a timely manner. Im concerned that earliest hatched chicks need to be shown the food and water soon.

Btw Wednesday 6/4 was day 21.

 

[fisherlady]

Day 23. I just moved one of the moms, 5 eggs under her and I didn't see any pips. What now?

You can candle or float test them (there are a number of threads here on the site for float testing)

If they are duds then pitch them, if you aren't sure you can remove them to an incubator or leave them with the broody. If the broody has any other chicks with her though she will soon be leaving the nest to care for them, if she does that then the remaining eggs will not make it unless you intervene.

 

[fisherlady]

Hi all. I have a broody Cochin who had 6 eggs under her that were laid over a 2 day period. Tuesday 6/3 in the afternoon I witnessed 2 chicks. Wednesday afternoon 2 more witnessed (they are different colors). I am out of town and have friend taking care of them. No evidence that mom has left nest yet. Do I have her inspect under mom and remove any eggs that haven't hatched or will mom leave them and start showing the chicks the food and water in a timely manner. Im concerned that earliest hatched chicks need to be shown the food and water soon.

Mama will most likely be up with the chicks by the end of 2 days, 3 at most. You can improve her odds of remaining on the nest by providing a low sided dish of chick starter and a waterer in her nesting area (just make sure the water is secure so it doesn't tip into her nest)
Check the remaining eggs for viability and then decide if you want to try leaving them with her or remove them to an incubator set up to see if they do pip or hatch. If they hatch then you can graft the chicks back to mama hen after they dry. If you see that they are pipping in the incubator you may even slip them back under the mama hen if she is still setting, though I wouldn't do this if the other babies are more than 3 days old, because they will need a day to get up to speed and they may be left behind if mama takes the others out for food.

 

[Phoenixxx]

Day 23. I just moved one of the moms, 5 eggs under her and I didn't see any pips. What now?

You can also hold them up to your ear and listen for "talking". If you don't hear anything, try candling; if they're alive you should see movement. With a weak flashlight you'll at least be able to see the edge of the air sac flexing and changing shapes as the baby moves.

I had 8 that didn't hatch from my incubated batch. I float-tested and all but one passed the test. None were viable: one had died about a week earlier, the rest had quit very early on. I read in another thread that you can poke a hole through the shell into the air sac area to see what's going on; this is ultimately what I did where I could see exactly how far the eggs had actually made it. But I wouldn't do this just yet, start by checking for sound and movement.

 

[GardenDave]

Hens frequently do this when we lift them to check. I have always just figured it to be mama's way of telling the little one to get back or stay back under (for safety). I do know some folks have had homicidal broodies, but I never have thankfully....so my understanding is that it is rare but can happen. My best advice would just be to leave her alone for a while, and try to just be in the area to observe her interactions with the chick after it starts to come out more. You will be able to better judge how she will be with the little one when their interactions aren't under stress from outside interferences.

Thanks fisher lady. Where would any of us be without you

I've just been back out and how relieved I am, but also a little worried that the chick is not, or perhaps doesn't even know how to, drink. At first I moved the chick to the water at the other side of the coop, where the natural light hits. The chick didn't drink. Mother way making a very unsettled noise and pushing under her as if trying to find the chick - (she wasn't pushing the other egg). I didn't want Silky to go nuts so I moved the chick closer to her and put her on the plate of chick crumb, and after a few moments although Silky was still making the noise, the chick made its own way back to her adopting mother. I moved the water closer to Silky and the chick. I'm using a normal water feeder but its quite shallow so I am confident that with the mother in beaks distance there should be no issues with drowning - I just hope the chick realises it must drink.

I am so proud of Silky. After abandoning the eggs I got especially for her a few months ago with just a week or less to go, now she has hatched somebody elses egg, is caring for it fantastically AND still sitting on the second egg although I don't hold high hopes for it hatching having not heard, seen or felt anything. To keep Silky happy I'll leave it there for a few more days or until she leaves it.

The chick is so cute. When I moved it to the water at the other side of the hutch it just stood there for a moment unsure what to do, and looked a little confused but not once falling over even though the wood shavings were unevenly laid. It was very confident on its feet, hopping off the plate of chick crumb as though it'd done it 1000 times before lol. Also very cute trying to decide how far under Silky to go. She squeaked a little bit and Silky raised slightly for the chick to get under. Chick decided its wings were chilly so it squeaked a little more and Silky raised herself a little more for the chick to go further under. Chick decided its bum was still cold so with a final few squeaks Silky lifted herself and chick got nice and warm under her.