Hi, I have a young silky female chicken who has gone broody. I got 3 fertilised eggs for her to sit on which she has now for approx 21 days. I don't think they will hatch, how long should I leave her to sit on them? And once I remove them will she just stop being broody? Don't know what to do as this is my first time having chickens (but loving it!). Thank you for your advice.
Broody hen
- Thread starter Loopy lou
- Start date
why do you think they won't hatch?
and welcome to BYC
!
and welcome to BYC
!HumbleAmerican
Songster
- Nov 3, 2021
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Did you candle them at any point?
How sure are you they were fertile?
How sure are you they were fertile?
HumbleAmerican
Songster
- Nov 3, 2021
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If you're sure about 21 days, leave them for a couple more days. After that broody break her.
Agreed.
The-White-Elephant
Philippians 4:13
some times, the chicks can hatch a day or 2 early, or they can hatch a day or 2 late
- Thread starter
- #6
I candled one and that seemed to be fertile compared to the others but that was when I first got them for her. I've not checked since incase she rejected them
She has rolled them in and out of her nest bless her, so I'm pretty sure they won't hatch. I just don't know how long to leave them and will she be ok if they don't hatch?Thank youwhy do you think they won't hatch?
and welcome to BYC
and because she has rolled them in and out the nest and when I candled them when I got them it looked to me like only one could be fertile. However, I am inexperienced so I could be wrong, hence why Ive not removed them. I'm more worried about her if they don't hatch and what I need to do to help her.
breaking a broody is caging her without a nest, as you discuss in the last post, or employing other methods to try to turn off her broody hormones. But you don't have to break her; she will give up the nest sooner or later anyway, when she thinks that the eggs are not going to hatch.
So glad to hear this - so how many days was it in the end?
Just leave her be now while they hatch; she will show them to you tomorrow, or the day after. They don't need anything for a couple of days - the absorbed yolk will feed them - then chick feed and a shallow water dish with marbles or suchlike in it so they can't drown. The broody can and will eat the chick feed too.
Congratulations seem to be in order. It's a good feeling, isn't it.
First, a couple of technical things. How sure are you on your counting of the days? That's a real common mistake on here. An egg does not have 24 hours worth of development when you start incubation, you don't say "one" until the next day. An easy way to check your counting is that the day of the week you start them is the day of the week the 21 days is up. If you start them on a Wednesday, then the target day is also a Wednesday.
With all that said, the record I've read on here for a hatch under a broody is 25 days after incubation started. I trust the lady that reported that to both count the days right and to be sure a late egg was not added to the brood. So while 24 days may be unusual it is not a record.
The way I understand it you candled that egg before incubation started. What made you think it was fertile? I don't know of any sign that candling can tell you that an egg is fertile until a few days after incubation started.
Now, what to do. Some of that depends on your set-up and your plans for raising the chick or hopefully chicks. Are you planning on letting the hen raise them with the flock or will you isolate them? What does the nest look like? My broody hens hatch in nests 2' to 4' above the coop floor. The broodies don't have any problems getting their chicks to jump to the coop floor but the nests are high enough that the chicks cannot get back in so at night she just squats on the coop floor to take care of them. If your nest is low she might take them back there at night. In any case once she brings them off the nest clean it out and put fresh bedding in it.
My broody hens raise them with the flock so I let my broody decide when to bring the chicks off the nest. As Perris said, they don't have to immediately eat or drink since they absorbed the yolk. The hen may bring the chick off pretty soon after it dries off or it may take 2 or 3 days. The only preparation I do is to have food and water on the coop floor where the chicks can get to it when she brings them off. I don't know what your feeder or waterer look like. If my other chickens see food in a new spot they immediately wipe it out even if it is the exact same feed they are eating. They can be a pain so you may have to work through that. If the waterer is big enough that they can get in it I put rocks in it so they can walk over it without falling in. They will poop in the water and clean water is important so clean it out daily.
This will depend some on what your coop looks like. My broody hens tend to keep the chicks in the coop for a couple of days before they take them outside. After they take them outside once they generally take them out every day all day to forage. At night they bring them back inside the coop to sleep. You need to be down there at bedtime to make sure everything is OK. Sometimes a chick has trouble getting back inside the coop and you have to help. But pretty soon they get all that worked out.
I don't isolate mine but the only thing I'll mention on that is to make sure they are isolated. You do not want a chick to be able to escape to where Mama cannot protect it. If it can escape it is in danger.
One other warning. I killed a chick by picking up the broody hen. Chicks sometimes crawl up under the hen's feathers, especially under the wings. I crushed a chick when I picked the hen up. That is not a good feeling. So if you pick her up just be careful.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.
First, a couple of technical things. How sure are you on your counting of the days? That's a real common mistake on here. An egg does not have 24 hours worth of development when you start incubation, you don't say "one" until the next day. An easy way to check your counting is that the day of the week you start them is the day of the week the 21 days is up. If you start them on a Wednesday, then the target day is also a Wednesday.
With all that said, the record I've read on here for a hatch under a broody is 25 days after incubation started. I trust the lady that reported that to both count the days right and to be sure a late egg was not added to the brood. So while 24 days may be unusual it is not a record.
The way I understand it you candled that egg before incubation started. What made you think it was fertile? I don't know of any sign that candling can tell you that an egg is fertile until a few days after incubation started.
Now, what to do. Some of that depends on your set-up and your plans for raising the chick or hopefully chicks. Are you planning on letting the hen raise them with the flock or will you isolate them? What does the nest look like? My broody hens hatch in nests 2' to 4' above the coop floor. The broodies don't have any problems getting their chicks to jump to the coop floor but the nests are high enough that the chicks cannot get back in so at night she just squats on the coop floor to take care of them. If your nest is low she might take them back there at night. In any case once she brings them off the nest clean it out and put fresh bedding in it.
My broody hens raise them with the flock so I let my broody decide when to bring the chicks off the nest. As Perris said, they don't have to immediately eat or drink since they absorbed the yolk. The hen may bring the chick off pretty soon after it dries off or it may take 2 or 3 days. The only preparation I do is to have food and water on the coop floor where the chicks can get to it when she brings them off. I don't know what your feeder or waterer look like. If my other chickens see food in a new spot they immediately wipe it out even if it is the exact same feed they are eating. They can be a pain so you may have to work through that. If the waterer is big enough that they can get in it I put rocks in it so they can walk over it without falling in. They will poop in the water and clean water is important so clean it out daily.
This will depend some on what your coop looks like. My broody hens tend to keep the chicks in the coop for a couple of days before they take them outside. After they take them outside once they generally take them out every day all day to forage. At night they bring them back inside the coop to sleep. You need to be down there at bedtime to make sure everything is OK. Sometimes a chick has trouble getting back inside the coop and you have to help. But pretty soon they get all that worked out.
I don't isolate mine but the only thing I'll mention on that is to make sure they are isolated. You do not want a chick to be able to escape to where Mama cannot protect it. If it can escape it is in danger.
One other warning. I killed a chick by picking up the broody hen. Chicks sometimes crawl up under the hen's feathers, especially under the wings. I crushed a chick when I picked the hen up. That is not a good feeling. So if you pick her up just be careful.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.
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