Broody Hen Thread!

[NewToFarming]

Mom seems to be helping. She's guiding her to food and the baby is eating a little but isn't really drinking. I'll try dipping her beak. Sorry I have zero experience with newly born chicks. She hatched some time 12:00-3:00. She must be exhausted. I'll keep y'all updated.
Btw the way the chick is a pure easter egger. But she's blue and brown. And her parents are all white and brown. Weird

No need to be sorry! We all were in the same boat as you at one point!!

You might be surprised how much of a difference you will see in the little one tomorrow!

 

[donnavee]

I had a Mama hen hatch 3 little ones a couple of weeks ago and I thought something was wrong with the last to hatch as she just stood around & looked dazed. When Mama took them in their house, this one just stood outside & cheeped. I put it in under it's Mom & the next day it was just fine - running & jumping with the other 2. Hope yours does the same - I firmly believe they do best with the Mama Hen as long as she is taking care of them.
Mom seems to be helping. She's guiding her to food and the baby is eating a little but isn't really drinking. I'll try dipping her beak. Sorry I have zero experience with newly born chicks. She hatched some time 12:00-3:00. She must be exhausted. I'll keep y'all updated.
Btw the way the chick is a pure easter egger. But she's blue and brown. And her parents are all white and brown. Weird

 

[OneCrazyCowgirl]

Thanks guys for your help! Hope the baby is better in the morning. Sassy the leghorn isn't her real mom but she hatched her so that counts I'm excited to have an EE! She is so pretty. I think the chick is a female because I looked at her convert and base wing feathers and ther are different lengths. Just can't believe how pretty and blue this baby is! Her dad is a beauty too

 

[NewToFarming]

Now that is one gorgeous daddy!

 

[OneCrazyCowgirl]

Now that is one gorgeous daddy!

Thanks so much !

 

[OneCrazyCowgirl]

So mom isn't laying on the baby. She's laying beside it. It's hot outside but should I turn on the heat lamp

 

[NewToFarming]

Can you tuck the baby underneath her? If the baby is under mom, she would be warm enough without a heat lamp.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

In the morning I take my buff out of the coop because she doesn't go with all the others to free range so she eats and drinks and goes back in to sit... I guess it's fine as long as she's getting food and water

Do you have her on some fertile eggs? If so, she'll hatch a brood for you, and it is an awesome way to get chicks.

Brooding hens generally get up once a day to eat, drink and relieve a really large, extra smelly poo. That's normal.

If you don't have fertile eggs under her, if she is the determined kind, she can extend her brood in frustration until she gets some chicks...which won't come...thus she broods more...at this point some birds can brood so long as to make them weak; but most quit before that.

If need be you can discourage her from the brood by a number of techniques if it gets to that point. Some lock the broody out of the coop/nest; some put her in a wire cage; and some dowse her with ice too cool her body temp to shut off hormones. I'm a believer in letting nature take its course with the brood, and after awhile gently but persistently picking her up off the nest and putting her in the yard with a yummy treat reward that causes her to linger a bit. Usually in time this works as you are rewarding her for not being on the nest.

Good luck on her brood.
Lady of McCamley

 

[Lady of McCamley]

What breeds are everyone's broodys?

I've had 2 broodys in my first year and both were hens I picked for their non broodyness!

(One Hy-line and the other a Black Rock)

My Black Rock hatched out 5 chicks

about 3 months ago and was a super mum for 5 weeks before totally abandoning them one day and my Hy-line has been on the nest all day doing her best 'growling puffball' impression. There doesn't seem to be any hard and fast rules for these girls. Seems more of an individual thing!

Okay...my all time best Broody is my Silkie...3 hatches just this year.
My next best is a Welsummer/RIR mix (might be more Welsummer than RIR...breeder wasn't sure if she was pure Welsummer or not as color was a little off). She hatched a clutch for me in May. Her sister (or half sister) another Welsumer/RIR also went broody at the same time, but didn't really stay the course, so I didn't use her this year.
Then I have had 2 Black Stars go broody...neither had fertile eggs so ended in frustration for them. One almost made it but pushed off the nest by the Welsummer/RIR and sulked in the coop...I encouraged her to end her brood with treats as she was just sulking.

So, I guess those are my breeds.
Lady of McCamley

 

[AmateurChickie]

My broody got off her eggs for so long today I thought she wasn't getting back on! Hopefully they're okay and she hatches them! The last two broodies we had didn't go that far, they got off after about two weeks and never got back on.