Broody Hen

[pilotswife]

Hello! Forgive me if this topic is covered elsewhere - we have have our chickens since May 2017, they were chicks and have all been raised together. We have 18 hens and 3 roosters. Yesterday, I noticed a particularly aggravated hen spending a lot of time in the nesting box. When I came near to collect eggs, she made a sound like a pterodactyl. I told my husband about it later, and he said, "she must be broody!" That didn't even cross my mind #firsttimechickenowner

Anyways, I don't know how many eggs she is sitting on, she is still there this morning. I know it can take around 21 days for them to hatch. My question is, do I remove the chicks from the main coop once hatched? I'm assuming they will need to be separated to keep safe and grow?

I have attached a pic of one of my girls just for fun. Thank you!

 

[melbah]

It's best to move her to a separate pen if you want her to hatch the eggs. The other hens will probably chase her off the eggs and then lay another egg in the spot. You would have eggs developing at different ages.

We use a dog house with straw in the bottom in a separate smaller run when we want to hatch eggs under a broody hen.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

It's important that you count and mark ALL the eggs you are going to leave under her and check for new deposits daily and remove them. Otherwise you may end up with a problematic staggered hatch. I use a sharpie because after using pencil and it getting lighter over time I collected a viable egg instead of the new deposit once. So now I draw a line all the way around the center of the egg both long and sideways. This makes it very easy to see when your trying to reach into a darkened nest.

I personally don't remove my hens and chicks from my coop or flock. I *may* put a little fence around them for the first couple of days to stop babes from wondering out and not being able to get back under mum and chilling to death. But I especially WOULDN'T let a hen set and then take her chicks away, if that was what you meant. Other teenage pullets are sometimes bullies towards chicks... but broody mom's are a force to be reckoned with! Roosters, despite most peoples' concern have NEVER been an issue for my chicks and they usually protect them and even call them to treats! Any roo who didn't... would HAVE to GO.

I will note... because I ALWAYS have chicks, roosters, layers, broody's, molting, juveniles... I use a flock raiser feed that has 20% protein and 1% calcium. I provide oyster shell on the side for layers. Layer feed has *usually* 16% protein and 4% calcium. That is too little protein for chicks (will stunt growth) and too much calcium for anybody NOT laying. Too much calcium *can* (doesn't mean will) cause issues like gout and kidney failure if fed long term to birds not in lay (more so if somehow genetically predisposed), and can even DELAY onset of laying! Feathers are made from 90% protein and it's amino acids. I realize I could be wasting my time mentioning this since I don't know what you actually feed already... But using (Purina) flock raiser (or any brand with the right protein/calcium levels. I have no loyalty, it's what is available to me) with oyster shell on the side for layers is the easiest way to feed my whole flock and have ALL ages/genders needs met. In addition, the 16% protein of most layer is meant to sustain light bodied birds like leghorn. Dual purpose birds like RIR, Rock, Orpington, Marans will do better with at least 18% protein. Get close to 30% though and your'e looking at possible gout and kidney failure again but from a different source/type. You can also feed unmedicated starter to your whole flock if you prefer with OS on the side. They will all enjoy the extra protein. But starter is always more pricey in my experience. I pay $17-20 for the Purina Flock Raiser (crumbles) depending on store.

Your gal is a cutie.
Hope this is helpful.. I'm passionate about broody's!
Happy hatching!

 

[1cock2hens]

search broody hen and there are dozens of threads from the last couple weeks alone that cover this..

 

[rbillips]

I would suggest moving your broody hen and the eggs to a separate location. I have had several broody hens over the past and had lots of trouble with hens moving them off and then the eggs get broken. I also kept my hen with her hatched chicks by themselves for a few days til everyone appeared strong and healthy then moved them to the main coop with no trouble. Good luck

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

You need to move her to a safe place to brood before they hatch. Nesting boxes are just not good places for chicks to hatch, and the other hens will bully her, lay eggs in her nest, which would result in lots of eggs hatching all different days. Make sure you move her when it is completely dark! This is very important, or else she may break, and get mad, and not sit.

 

[Molpet]

I block off the nest box from the rest of the flock. I have a gate across the opening that she can open when she wants to go out. I am retired though and out there most of the time.. I learn what time she usually gets off the nest so I am around to swing the gate back when she has returned
I also mark the eggs and check when she is out to make sure no one snuck one in.