Broody Hen Thread!

[microchick]

JayJo how are you standing that? Being away with chicks hatching?

So, I confess, I peeked this morning when I opened up the coop for the day. Aggie is still sitting in the same position that she has set in for the past two days and there were soft peeps coming out from under her. Usually I just do a morning sniff and run making sure there aren't any rotten eggs in the nest, etc. The difference this time is that Aggie has been fiercely protective of her eggs and chicks. No pecking, but she has that I'm a pterodactyl look about her that lets me know that she isn't to be bothered. Moving her and her chicks to their nursery box is going to be interesting.

But see, our barn is centrally located so I HAVE to walk by it to get to the coop, the garden, the pond where we are clearing brush, the wood splitter the orchard, so there is no reason why I shouldn't stop just to make sure everything is okay.........

LofMc I have to admit that I'm completely sold on the 'isolation' technique that PD-Riverman instructs broody owners to use. I don't know about Aggie, but the stress has been minimal for me. My only regret now is that I built my nursery box too small. Even my husband queried as to what I was going to do if I had 2 hens go broody at the same time. That's a good question.

Aggies first broods are growing up so fast. This morning one of my favorite little pullets squatted for me when I petted her and last night I saw one of the cockerels try and awkward dance for one of the girls. Won't be long till they are laying. My plan is to pull one of the two mature roosters from the flock and leave one to keep the young males in line and teach them the ropes.Then pull all but one of the young cockerels from the remaining boys leaving two in with the hens. My current brooding coop is going to become the rooster pen and grow out pen.

 

[Honora]

I have five brown stars and 3 Californian white hens. I have a white hen and a brown hen that suddenly went broody. One fluffs up and growls at me and the other (my "pet" hen) doesn't growl when I put my hand in the nesting box. The brown hen "Piper" is friendly all the time and doesn't care about being picked up but I am wondering why she has the urge to sit in that nest all day! I also just got six black australorp chicks. Could they be the reason? Here is a pic of Piper. The picture of the white hen "Duchess" can be found on my page. Quite an appropriate name for such a diva!

Are you wanting to break them or let them hatch chicks? No advice for you but your hen is lovely.

 

[microchick]

First picture!

My on guard chicken raptor let me get a few pictures of her first hatched babies. I saw three. The first hatched is a pure Buff O. One, you can just see the beak peeking out from Mom's neck feathers, looks to be my first pure Welsummer. SHE looks to be a perfect chipmunk with eyeliner and the last one has me excited. You can see it clearly in the picture. It looks like it has a dark overlay so I am wondering if my Lavender O didn't get his groove on with one of the hens.




She still hasn't changed positions so undoubtedly there are more to come. Hopefully.

Have you ever seen a better definition of 'Stink Eye' in your life?

 

[Lady of McCamley]

First picture!

My on guard chicken raptor let me get a few pictures of her first hatched babies. I saw three. The first hatched is a pure Buff O. One, you can just see the beak peeking out from Mom's neck feathers, looks to be my first pure Welsummer. SHE looks to be a perfect chipmunk with eyeliner and the last one has me excited. You can see it clearly in the picture. It looks like it has a dark overlay so I am wondering if my Lavender O didn't get his groove on with one of the hens.




She still hasn't changed positions so undoubtedly there are more to come. Hopefully.

Have you ever seen a better definition of 'Stink Eye' in your life?

Yes, if looks could kill.

Congratulations on the first...keeping my fingers crossed more coming soon.
LofMc

 

[mossyroo]

They had started hatching by the time I got home Fri. Trying to leave them alone but we are pretty sure at least 10 have hatched,

 

[aplynn]

I am new to this thread, but I have 4 mama hens right now 1 Bantam Buff Coachin, 1 Bearded white silkie, and 2 barnyard layer hens. All 4 of them within the last 4 days have either been given incubated babies that hatched or have hatched their own babies or a mix of both LOL I would love to be able to share some pics and stories with others who have broody Mamas





This is my unbearded silkie mama who is no longer with us, she gave her life to a fox to save her babies..... Sad, but a lesson for us all in fox proofing. Her babies are healthy and doing wonderful



This Mama surprised me one day, Went to check on her one morning and I did not even realize she had eggs under her. The only fertile eggs I have are from my Bantam silkies and Bantam coachins. Apparently she had been stealing their eggs and sitting on them as she has 1 coachin and 2 silkie babies that she is very proud to show off...

This lady we got as an experienced mama she was given these babies to care for they hatched out of my incubator.

I do have another Silkie mama but she is in mid hatch right now so I do not want to bother her for pics. She is my white bearded mama.

I can't wait to see more pics and stories of other people's broody hens...

 

[microchick]

Thanks LofMc. I went out to the barn about an hour ago to get a tool I needed and heard a 'chick in distress' cry coming from the coop. Looked in the window and sure enough, a chick had managed to get itself out of the nest and was frantically trying to get back in. Mom was coaxing it on but it just couldn't make the jump so I boosted it back into the nest much to 'mom's' relief. Went into the house to get a piece of cardboard so I could slide it in place to make it harder for the chicks to fall out of the nesting box and by the time I got back to the barn, Aggie was off the nest. I think she was just hot and couldn't stand being without water any longer cause she was standing by the water dish and calling to the chicks. They were jumping up and down trying to negotiate the barricade so it gave me a chance to kick into high gear, dump out the egg shells from the nest and do a head count. I think I counted 6 or 7 hatched. They were moving around too much and I was trying to multitask. There was one out of the shell and drying, one just out of the shell and an egg zipping. Three eggs hadn't hatched yet. One felt light and I doubt if it developed. One dark egg felt heavy and at that point I thought, good grief, she is off the nest and babies are still hatching. Incubator time? I ran back inside and turned on my emergency incubator ran back outside and Aggie must have seen me messing with her nest cause she was back on it giving me her stink eye. I doubt if she will be willing to stay on it much longer. I'll have to remove the barricade at some point but in the mean time I'll keep an eye on things and if I have abandoned eggs, candle and if necessary put them in the bator till they hatch if they are viable.

Thankfully, looks like they are healthy chicks at this point. Good stock.

 

[Mezzer]

Nothing yet, I kept my hands off the eggs as promised, but I DID lift her gently a few inches up to take a hurried peek. So no chicks yet, day 20

 

[mossyroo]

6 eggs under each. Sweetie has moved out of the nest. I see 5 chicks with her and found a desiccated body in the nest. I can see 3 with Mel but don't know what may be under her.

 

[16 paws]

I am new to this thread, but I have 4 mama hens right now 1 Bantam Buff Coachin, 1 Bearded white silkie, and 2 barnyard layer hens. All 4 of them within the last 4 days have either been given incubated babies that hatched or have hatched their own babies or a mix of both LOL I would love to be able to share some pics and stories with others who have broody Mamas





This is my unbearded silkie mama who is no longer with us, she gave her life to a fox to save her babies..... Sad, but a lesson for us all in fox proofing. Her babies are healthy and doing wonderful



This Mama surprised me one day, Went to check on her one morning and I did not even realize she had eggs under her. The only fertile eggs I have are from my Bantam silkies and Bantam coachins. Apparently she had been stealing their eggs and sitting on them as she has 1 coachin and 2 silkie babies that she is very proud to show off...

This lady we got as an experienced mama she was given these babies to care for they hatched out of my incubator.

I do have another Silkie mama but she is in mid hatch right now so I do not want to bother her for pics. She is my white bearded mama.

I can't wait to see more pics and stories of other people's broody hens...

So sorry about your silkie. Thanks for sharing your pictures. You have quite a few little fluffies to watch. Beautiful!

6 eggs under each. Sweetie has moved out of the nest. I see 5 chicks with her and found a desiccated body in the nest. I can see 3 with Mel but don't know what may be under her.

Cuties, congratulations!