Broody Hen Thread!

[Happy Flock]

Here is a picture of mom and babies. There are four, but I think one is under her taking a nap. The cuteness factor is extreme !!

Gorgeous mum and babies!!!

My Buff Orpington just had 1 chick hatch today. There are 7 more eggs under her. How long till the others hatch? Should I leave her alone, or should I check under her on a regular basis? SO excited!!!

Anyone with tips? I can't wait!!!

I also have another Orpington with 5 eggs due to hatch today.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Gorgeous mum and babies!!!

My Buff Orpington just had 1 chick hatch today. There are 7 more eggs under her. How long till the others hatch? Should I leave her alone, or should I check under her on a regular basis? SO excited!!!

Anyone with tips? I can't wait!!!

I also have another Orpington with 5 eggs due to hatch today.

Depends on if the eggs were set at the same time or over a period of days....usually all eggs that are set at the same time will hatch within 24 to 48 hours and anything beyond that is simply not going to make it.

It is usually best to interfere as little as possible with mom while she takes care of the little chick and waits for the others to hatch.

Just keep a watch on them to make sure mom isn't forgetting to sit with the eggs or forgetting to take care of the newly hatched chick but most moms do both with ease.

If she is having trouble in one area or the other...then you can put the abandoned eggs in an incubator to try to hatch them or with the other hen....if the little chick is being abandoned then you may wish to take care of it until the others hatch...but again mom usually does both without any outside help and prefers being left to her business.

After they hatch it is generally best to keep mom and chicks separate from the others. It keeps stress down for mom and is safer for the chicks from overly curious or overly aggressive hens.

Also since it is cold weather where most of us live now, make sure where you have the chicks is safe for them and that they cannot get themselves lost outside the nest with a "stupid chick trick.". Little chicks can succumb to the cold very quickly and they are very good about finding a way outside of the nest but can't seem to figure out how to get back into it. Mom does her best to keep the gang together but I've had chicks wander off and get lost behind a wood partition and succumb to the cold...so make sure they have a nice safe place where mom can keep a good eye on them.

EDITED TO ADD: Ah...just caught you are in Australia so it is probably pretty warm...then ditto for safe place but instead babies can dehydrate pretty quickly in strong heat. Make sure mom and babes have access to drinking water that can't be clogged with bedding or knocked over.

Also since you are hatching in warm weather you will have to watch to make sure the unhatched eggs are not spoiled as they can explode in the heat spreading gook everywhere. If you haven't candled yet it might be a good idea to gently check on what condition the unhatched eggs are in after 24 hours to make sure some aren't beginning to seep. Spoiled eggs generally crack and then seep icky smelling stuff but not always. Mom often rolls the bad eggs out but not always. You don't want that rotten mess spread over the nest and other unhatched chicks or the newly hatched chicks.

Good luck with your new broods.
Lady of McCamley

 

[Happy Flock]

(...) EDITED TO ADD: Ah...just caught you are in Australia so it is probably pretty warm...then ditto for safe place but instead babies can dehydrate pretty quickly in strong heat. Make sure mom and babes have access to drinking water that can't be clogged with bedding or knocked over.

Thanks Lady of McCamley! Although I live in Australia and it's supposed to be warm now, we are having a cold spell in the south of the country where I live. So your advice about what to watch out for in cold weather is quite timely.

All eggs were set at the same time for both hens. They are in the basement, isolated from the rest of the flock. I'll keep an eye on mums, but not interfere unless necessary. Pretty hard to keep away from them, though! So cute!

 

[soldonold]

Gorgeous mum and babies!!!

My Buff Orpington just had 1 chick hatch today. There are 7 more eggs under her. How long till the others hatch? Should I leave her alone, or should I check under her on a regular basis? SO excited!!!

Anyone with tips? I can't wait!!!

I also have another Orpington with 5 eggs due to hatch today.

Thanks! This is her first hatch, but she seems like she has that mommy instinct! So much easier than using the incubator, and really fun to see them together. I totally agree with Lady of McCamley's advice. Based on my recent experience, I won't ever have the mom and eggs in a nest box that the new babies can get out of and not get back in. The first two to hatch went off exploring their new world really early and couldn't get back in the nest box (just a new kitty litter pan with hay) I had her in, so she had to get down to her new chicks, and the remaining eggs got cold. The little coop I have them in is about 4 ft x 4 ft and they can't get out of it. After I took away the nest box and had her sitting on the floor, she was able to keep sitting on the eggs, and the hatched chicks could scoot back under her whenever they get cold. Wish I would have thought about that sooner. I'm sure that is why the fifth chick died in the egg. She was worried about her hatched chicks and had to decide to go sit with them on the floor instead of in the nest box with her unhatched eggs. It is so hard to lose any of them. Even though I have eggs for breakfast, I look at them in a whole new way since I started hatching chicks. They are just so adorable. Good luck with your remaining eggs!

 

[Happy Flock]

4 babies so far...

2 white Orpingtons and 2 cuckoo Orpingtons.
8 more eggs to go.

 

[chickenkeeper12]

My momma silkie just hatched out 4 chicks and it is going to be really cold the next few nights so I moved her and the chicks into the garage. During the day I have the light on, so I was wondering if I should keep it on over night or turn it off. Thanks

 

[fisherlady]

My momma silkie just hatched out 4 chicks and it is going to be really cold the next few nights so I moved her and the chicks into the garage. During the day I have the light on, so I was wondering if I should keep it on over night or turn it off. Thanks

Are you asking about a heat light or the normal overhead light for the garage? If heat light, what temps are you dealing with and can the mama cover the babies? If mama can cover the babies and has been outside normally and is accustomed to the chilling temps then she should be fine without any additional heat as long as the location isn't drafty and you have something to insulate her from the cold floor.

If you are just talking of your normal overhead garage lighting then I would turn it off at night, maybe leave a night light somewhere so that there is some dim lighting for humans to safely navigate the area, but the hens and babies wouldn't have light in an outside coop overnight and don't need for anything I can think of. Just make sure they have light available inside as much as they would if they were outside.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Are you asking about a heat light or the normal overhead light for the garage?   If heat light, what temps are you dealing with and can the mama cover the babies?  If mama can cover the babies and has been outside normally and is accustomed to the chilling temps then she should be fine without any additional heat as long as the location isn't drafty and you have something to insulate her from the cold floor.

If you are just talking of your normal overhead garage lighting then I would turn it off at night, maybe leave a night light somewhere so that there is some dim lighting for humans to safely navigate the area, but the hens and babies wouldn't have light in an outside coop overnight and don't need for anything I can think of.  Just make sure they have light available inside as much as they would if they were outside.

x2

My Silkie has hatched in February when temps were 30 to 32 at night and 39 by day. She and the chicks did fine in a covered coop out of the weather with no light or heat...so if your garage is above freezing I wouldn't do anything. Otherwise I'd keep it warm enough so the water doesn't freeze up as little chicks can dehydrate very quickly.

Also make sure a chick can't separate itself from mom and succumb to the cold. They are very good at getting through tiny spaces and stranding themselves and freezing. Watch for even blind corners where they can get confused (lesson learned personally).

Lady of McCamley

 

[chickenkeeper12]

Thank you guys so much for the information. It helped out a lot.

 

[kiwijean83]

I suspect that one of my Welsummer hens is broody (this is my first year with chickens and have never had a broody hen before. She is only 8 months old...). She has plucked out all of the feathers on her breast, has been in the nesting box for 2 days (though I have been putting her up on the roost at night, last night she threw a FIT, but stayed up there). It has been freezing here lately (~25degrees at night), so I am torn: do I put her in the broody breaker, or do I order some hatching eggs. How long should you wait to see if a first time broody sticks, I don't want her to give up on the eggs after a few days....?