Broody Hen Thread!

[PD-Riverman]

I asked a few days ago if the eggs my hen has sitting on would be alright as she had stopped sitting and they were cold. I have since candled them again and only one is alive. I don't know what to do as it is due to hatch two days before I go away. I cannot cancel the going away as it is a surgery that I have been waiting for a while for. I will be away for about 6 days and my brother was going to come and feed the grown chooks I have every day or so. the hen is still making calling noises and pays little attention to two eggs I put with her. Do you think she will except a chicken in 3 or 4 days. I really don't know what to do as it will be one little lonely chicken, can't find any other day old for sale to be its friend were I live as it has just hit winter. someone suggested turning the incubator off but I don't think I can bring myself to doing that. I just don't know what to do, I mean would it really be satisfied to be the only chick, with no attention and feed and watered once a day?? it would have all my attention when I get home but it ha to survive six days on its own first. I'm just hoping someone will tell me the hen will accept it without any problems.

Rose No one can tell you that----can you get a friend/family to keep/tend the chick while you are away instead of putting it with a hen---that might/might not take care of it?

 

[Rose98]

My brother who I going to look after the hens is willing to look after the chick but he works all day and will only be able to feed it 1-2 times a day. its going to be lonely during the day, do you think the hen may take it, I will hopefully have time to introduce it to the hen or do you think it's not worth trying. Thanks for both of your help.

 

[suliah]

Hello folks...

So my first experience with a broody isn't turning out quite like I planned...

Checked on her last Thursday, she was doing fine, eggs were fine (though I think she was down 1, down to 11).

Went out of town for the weekend. Checked sunday night.

2 eggs left. I found parts of a shell from 1 (it still had the veining in it, i about cried)...

The 2 seem alive, but we still have another week to go!

So I'm torn! I really want to see her hatch some, or at least see how she is with chicks. Soooo... do i:

1. wait a week to see what hatches, buy some chicks, and let her do her thing with her surro-chicks

2. throw another dozen eggs under her now, that way if her 2 don't hatch she's a week into a new batch and let her try to hatch her own (but that'll mean 5 weeks on a nest)

My situation is that I have a brooder, but no incubator. I can handle new chicks, but I can't incubate eggs. Not that it matters, she didn't abandon them, looks like the nest got attacked.


I was trying to let her do her thing in the main coop. This afternoon I'm moving her to her own space, keeping the others away. I'm pretty sure my male duck was involved in the massacre, since everything was just gone in the nest and all of my chickens were fine. I'm heartbroken over those 10 eggs...

 

[casey197530]

Casey -- I love your set up. It looks like it is 100% outside -- I gather there was no issues with the broody wanting back in the coop at night? My broody adventures continue. For those interested -- and with a long attention span, lol -- here is the full tale. It was day 23, my broody with still on the nest with only one chick visible. I could smell a whiff of rotten egg and there were flies everywhere. I lift her up to see what is going on. Lo and behold there are two more small chicks tucked way in the back. Small, but alive and fluffy. I take the nearest 2 of the 4 remaining eggs and give them the sniff test. One is clearly rotten. Further inspection revealed a dead embryo -- maybe 14/15 days and an truly awful smell. Yuck. The other I'm not so sure about, so I give it back to her. A couple of hours later I see her struggling around in the nest. It looks like she is trying to get up, but can't. She is thrashing around and banging into her chicks. That's it, I'm taking her off the nest. I gather the babies up and put the in a box -- and lift her out. Poor, poor broody. She is skin and bones and crusted with reeking poo. She can't stand, her legs are collapsing into a splits position. I clean her up as best I can with damp paper towels and hold her for awhile in an upright position until she is able to get her legs back under her. After a few collapses, she is finally able to stand and teeter around. I decide to ditch the eggs. I'm not hearing anything and it turns out each one contained a dead and decomposing embryo. It looks like they quit around day 17/18 -- right around the time of the first exploding rotten eggs. She was able to lead her three chicks to a new corner of the coop. I put food, water and chick grit in front of her and then scrambled and fed her an egg with some sunflower seeds which she wolfed down. I'm a little worried about her. I know its good for a hen to sit tight, but I think she took her job way too seriously. I should have forced her off the nest a few time (like I did for her last year). I hope she and her chicks make it. She really was an incredibly dedicated mother with her chicks last year. The picture is from yesterday, when she was still on the nest with the one frisky chick.

No problem wanting back in the coop I have raised two this is my third in there and they seem Ok with it. It is like Fort Knox so nothing can get to them

 

[Mandyj0458]

My hen is laying on one egg that was cheeping four days ago. The cheeping has stopped & nothing has happened. Is it safe to say the little guy didn't make it or is there still hope?

 

[Morrigan]

Do you know for sure that the egg didn't actually hatch. Sometimes the chicks are pretty shy and you don't see them for the first couple of days.

 

[fisherlady]

My hen is laying on one egg that was cheeping four days ago. The cheeping has stopped & nothing has happened. Is it safe to say the little guy didn't make it or is there still hope?

If it isn't out then likely wore itself out and died when it didn't make it out. I would check because if she is still setting on it you could end up with a mess. If it died you need to decide to either break her broodiness or get her other chicks to raise.

 

[Mandyj0458]

Ok.. I carefully & cautiously broke open the shell & it had indeed died. Poor little thing. This egg hatching process can be brutal! Fortunately, I had bought a couple chicks when I got her some eggs to lay on. I just added these chicks to her nest box & she quickly nuzzled them close to her & all is well. Maybe someday I'll get the opportunity to experience an egg hatch. Thanks for the responses.

 

[EastNashChick]

Quote:
I don't envy you the decision. I couldn't kill the living embryo either. Is your brother willing to see if the broody is interested in the chick (frankly it doesn't sound like she is, but who knows)? Is there a local thread on this list? There might be someone willing to share a chick with you or "mother" this one for a few days. Poor baby is going to be really lonely. It will have a couple of days to get on its feet before you leave (assuming it hatches on time), so maybe that will help. Good luck with the baby and the surgery.

I agree. I would try your local thread for a chick/incubator sitter, and see if you can get someone in your area to help. Plus see if any have chicks that will be less than a week old at your chicks hatch. When you get back you can pop one in with her. I'm sure someone in your area would help.

 

[PD-Riverman]

My hen is laying on one egg that was cheeping four days ago. The cheeping has stopped & nothing has happened. Is it safe to say the little guy didn't make it or is there still hope?

Did you take the egg from under her 4 days ago---and hold it to your ear and hear it cheeping or you could hear it with her sitting on it??