Broody Hen Thread!

[Mojo12]

Help! I didn't separate my hen. Will the chicks be OK with the rest of the hens & the rooster? Should I remove partially hatched eggs?? Will they hatch if I do or would I be a chick murderer!!??? I don't want the other chickens to kill them. What should I do?? I need help like right now!!!!

 

[nchls school]

Help! I didn't separate my hen. Will the chicks be OK with the rest of the hens & the rooster? Should I remove partially hatched eggs?? Will they hatch if I do or would I be a chick murderer!!??? I don't want the other chickens to kill them. What should I do?? I need help like right now!!!!

My broody hens set and raise their chicks in the coop with hens that are laying and the rooster. Hens are quite protective of their chicks keeping them safe from other birds that might hurt them. A wayward chick just gets a peck and then a quick dash back to mom. You need to watch, of course, until you see the flock dynamics and remove the hen and chicks if need be. From your post it sounds like the chicks are soon to hatch. Good luck. My advice it to do nothing unless you see a need to.

When did your hen start brooding? Is she in a nest that is chick safe; from falling or anything else that might be hurtful? Have you been removing fresh eggs that may have been laid daily?

 

[PD-Riverman]

She's in the main pen now, once they hatch I have a large dog cage I can put them in with mama untill they are bigger. I marked them with a light pencil and marked my calendar. I'm worried my cats will
Get them if I don't put them in a pen right after hatching.

The light pencil mark will be gone in a day or two----some use a sharpie---I use a no 2 pencil and draw a circle around, and around, and around the small end making it a dark circle----about 1/4th the way from the end--- that usually last. You probably know "I" move all my broodies at the beginning to a private hatching pen---so I do not have problems, don't have to check under her daily and have great hatches. Good Luck

One other thing------a dog kennel will have to be modified with something(wire/etc) so the chicks do not walk right through the sides/ends.

 

[10AcreChick]

Eggcitement! I candled all dozen eggs my broody Australorp is sitting on (day 10 today) and all twelve are fertile and moving! I got them from a friend at work, we weren't sure how thorough his rooster is, but apparently very thorough! There are 9 Easter Eggers, 1 EE x Phoenix, and 2 other EE x ?.

She is eating and drinking. Just regular layer feed, should I give her anything else or is that sufficient?

 

[PD-Riverman]

Eggcitement! I candled all dozen eggs my broody Australorp is sitting on (day 10 today) and all twelve are fertile and moving! I got them from a friend at work, we weren't sure how thorough his rooster is, but apparently very thorough! There are 9 Easter Eggers, 1 EE x Phoenix, and 2 other EE x ?.

She is eating and drinking. Just regular layer feed, should I give her anything else or is that sufficient?

That's Great and her food is fine. As you probably know I would ask to see if the food is next to her nest? In my experience food/water where she can not get to it without getting off the nest---usually keeps her from pooping in the nest---mainly the last 2/3 days. Good Luck

 

[microchick]

Help! I didn't separate my hen. Will the chicks be OK with the rest of the hens & the rooster? Should I remove partially hatched eggs?? Will they hatch if I do or would I be a chick murderer!!??? I don't want the other chickens to kill them. What should I do?? I need help like right now!!!!

Mojo12, first off welcome to the forum. Second, you chicks should be fine. Momma will protect them once they leave the nest. That usually happens 48 hours after they hatch. If Momma abandons late eggs, you will be looking at a staggered hatch and facing the option of bringing the unhatched or partially hatched eggs into the house and into an incubator to hatch. Some have just placed the eggs on a warm heating pad and covered them with moist paper towels to give them a chance to hatch. Once they hatch you can put them back with Momma. Folks advise to do it at night. There are several good articles here on hatching eggs with a broody that I highly recommend.

Most of all, the last three days of incubation is the hands off 72 hours referred to as Lock Down. Do not bother hen or Eggs during that period of time.

If you want to move your newly hatched hen and chicks to a safer area after they hatch, wait till after mom leaves the nest with her babies and then move them together to an area where they can e seen by the rest of the flock.

Try not to worry. Hens have been hatching chicks longer than I care to think about and generally they do fine without any help from us.

 

[slordaz]

apparently just locking them all up and not letting them free range seems to have helped, 2 have broken now and started laying again and none of the others but the leghorn sitting on eggs has been up in the nests but haven't started laying again yet

 

[sharol]

I have really messed up. I had 2 first time broodies in my English Orpington coop that were setting on eggs. I had written down that they were set to hatch this coming weekend, but last Saturday, my white hen hatched out 4 little Jubilee chicks. The Mottle (the other broodie) went completely nuts, came off her nest and tried to steal the baby chicks. In the process, two of them were killed. I isolated the mottle, but she had lost interest in her own eggs, so I stuck them in the incubator. I thought I had written down the wrong date since as I remember it, the two were set within a day of each other. The white is doing fine with the remaining 2 chicks in the coop with the flock.

No chicks from the mottle's eggs, so this morning I was going to pitch them. I candled them (after having them in lock down mode with high humidity and not moving them for 5 days) and they are all showing movement and life.

Now I don't know what to do. I guess I'll keep the humidity up since the movement appears to be in the area of the air cell, and all the cells are large and well defined.

Experts out there: Other than not leaving two broodies with similar hatch dates next to each other (duh), any suggestions on these eggs?

Oh, and I have two experienced broodies in the same coop due next week. Sigh. The two that are still setting usually raise their chicks together, and I'm hoping to move them into a different protected area once their respective hatches start. They have moved well in the past at that point.

 

[slordaz]

ok that BR broody is either going to be a blessing or a curse, she's still taking care of her 6 week old chicks and started laying again but is hiding them in preparation for brooding again, she gets rather upset with us when we take the egg as they aren't fertile in the first place

 

[16 paws]

I have really messed up. I had 2 first time broodies in my English Orpington coop that were setting on eggs. I had written down that they were set to hatch this coming weekend, but last Saturday, my white hen hatched out 4 little Jubilee chicks. The Mottle (the other broodie) went completely nuts, came off her nest and tried to steal the baby chicks. In the process, two of them were killed. I isolated the mottle, but she had lost interest in her own eggs, so I stuck them in the incubator. I thought I had written down the wrong date since as I remember it, the two were set within a day of each other. The white is doing fine with the remaining 2 chicks in the coop with the flock.

No chicks from the mottle's eggs, so this morning I was going to pitch them. I candled them (after having them in lock down mode with high humidity and not moving them for 5 days) and they are all showing movement and life.

Now I don't know what to do. I guess I'll keep the humidity up since the movement appears to be in the area of the air cell, and all the cells are large and well defined.

Experts out there: Other than not leaving two broodies with similar hatch dates next to each other (duh), any suggestions on these eggs?

Oh, and I have two experienced broodies in the same coop due next week. Sigh. The two that are still setting usually raise their chicks together, and I'm hoping to move them into a different protected area once their respective hatches start. They have moved well in the past at that point.

I know some people have had good luck with two broodys sharing the hatches but I have not. My two broody bantam cochins were best friends until the chicks started hatching but like your situation all @#$%%% broke loose when the chicks started hatching. Fortunately I was there in time to save a chick that almost got pecked to death. I will not let 2 broodies hatch together after that. It just isnt worth the risk to me anyway.
Good luck on your bator chicks.
Marie