Broody Hen?

[beth1004]

She has been on 5 eggs. As of last night, 3 had hatched and 1 was in the process. The last one, I’m not sure about. If it hasn’t started pipping, how long do I give it?

 

[aart]

She has been on 5 eggs. As of last night, 3 had hatched and 1 was in the process. The last one, I’m not sure about. If it hasn’t started pipping, how long do I give it?

Until mama brings the hatched chicks off the nest to eat and drink.

 

[beth1004]

Until mama brings the hatched chicks off the nest to eat and drink.

Will she not return to it if it isn’t viable?

 

[aart]

Will she not return to it if it isn’t viable?

She should stay with it if it's still alive....and leave it if it's not.
Should...no telling with live animals.
Give it a couple more days and observe.

 

[beth1004]

Thanks!!

 

[beth1004]

The babies and momma are great. The 5th egg was a dud. We’ve lost one baby that drowned in a baby pool. Lesson learned, keep the duck run locked.

 

[D-Bar-B]

View attachment 1715992 Hey,
I’m a year into chickens and wondered if I have a broody hen and how do I know for sure.

Here’s a little info to start, I collect our eggs once or twice a day. I was gone all day yesterday so when I went out last night around 6:30 there was a hen on a nest. She made dinosaur sounds when I walked in. I was out about 20 minutes and she was still there when I was heading back in so I left her alone. My husband went out later to lock everyone up and she was still on the nest. This morning she wasn’t on there but there were a couple of eggs in the nest. What do I do? Leave the eggs there and see if she spends more time in there. I’ll be leaving for work in a bit and will be gone all day. If she isn’t broody, I don’t want to leave the eggs sitting. If she is, I wouldn’t mind her hatching a few eggs. Do I mark them? This is an area I’m completely clueless in.

It's interesting to come across this forum today. I think I have a broody hen too (my first)...I'm not sure if I need to do anything since I don't have any roosters, so there's no chance of fertilized eggs. And at this point, she just keeps laying in a nesting box with the fake ceramic egg under her. I'm perplexed...lol

 

[aart]

It's interesting to come across this forum today. I think I have a broody hen too (my first)...I'm not sure if I need to do anything since I don't have any roosters, so there's no chance of fertilized eggs. And at this point, she just keeps laying in a nesting box with the fake ceramic egg under her. I'm perplexed...lol

First figure out if she's really broody, these are the sign I use:
Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, does she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck(ticking bomb) sound on her way back to the nest?
If so, then she is probably broody and you'll have to decide how to manage it.


Then you'll need to decide if you want her to hatch out some chicks, and how you will 'manage' it.
Do you have, or can you get, some fertile eggs?
Do you have the space needed? Both for more chickens and she may need to be separated by wire from the rest of the flock.
Do you have a plan on what to do with the inevitable males? Rehome, butcher, keep in separate 'bachelor pad'?
If you decide to let her hatch out some fertile eggs, this is a great thread for reference and to ask questions.
It's a long one but just start reading the first few pages, then browse thru some more at random.
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/496101/broody-hen-thread


If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, best to break her broodiness promptly.
My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

I used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.
Chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.

 

[New2Chicks97]

She sounds a lot like my hen. I checked on her last night, and I believe the hen wanted to kill me. At least that was the look in her eye.

We have our first dedicated broody too. Our two year old BCM. She bit me when I tried to take away her eggs. At that point she can keep them. I like my skin intact! She has been there for over a week now. I am getting her some chicks this weekend.

My plan is to move her tomorrow night when the small dog pen I ordered shows up from Amazon with her eggs into a nest on the ground in the coop then sneak the chicks in Saturday night. I ordered her 2 Cream Legbars and 2 Blue Jersey Giants.

I am hoping she turns out to be a good mom so I don’t have to set up a second brooder in my house. I already have 4 Frizzle bantam Cochins in my laundry room. The good news is that at least they are pretty much done needing the Ecoglow if I absolutely do need to make another brooder.

 

[Col1948]

After reading this thread I went out this morning and bought a dog crate, the reason being I have a second hen that has gone broody.
The first one is out of it now and is laying again so it's just this one at the moment, I put food and water in plus a roost, at the moment she is sat on the roost, she has eaten and drank.
Also while I was getting it ready she went off with the others in the garden but she soon returned, lo and behold she just went straight in the crate, so I locked the door behind her lol.
I'm going to let her out later to see if she wants to free range in the garden with the others.