Broody Hen

Obsessed With Silkies

Free Ranging
Jan 15, 2022
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Evening everyone! I have a broody silkie hen right now. She's been sitting on eggs for over a week now. She originally was sitting on her egg then I put 5 under her to try to hatch some chicks. 4 of the 5 didn't make it so now She's sitting on her egg and the one that did survive so far. I put two more under her today to make sure she can hatch at least one chick out of all this. My question is how long is too long for a hen to be broody and on a nest? Also, I tried to move her a couple days of her faithfulness to the eggs but in her separate enclosure she didn't go back on the eggs. It was pretty cold then and it still is here at night. Another problem I have is a some hens push her off the nest during the day to lay their egg. Looking for any advice on this. If anyone has any ideas on how to keep her in a warm safe spot away from the others or any info on a broody hen any of you might have. Thanks everyone!!!
 
Evening everyone! I have a broody silkie hen right now. She's been sitting on eggs for over a week now. She originally was sitting on her egg then I put 5 under her to try to hatch some chicks. 4 of the 5 didn't make it so now She's sitting on her egg and the one that did survive so far. I put two more under her today to make sure she can hatch at least one chick out of all this. My question is how long is too long for a hen to be broody and on a nest? Also, I tried to move her a couple days of her faithfulness to the eggs but in her separate enclosure she didn't go back on the eggs. It was pretty cold then and it still is here at night. Another problem I have is a some hens push her off the nest during the day to lay their egg. Looking for any advice on this. If anyone has any ideas on how to keep her in a warm safe spot away from the others or any info on a broody hen any of you might have. Thanks everyone!!!
It is not a good idea to intentionally cause a staggered hatch. You really should remove to 2 extra eggs you added today immediately.
Broody hens will leave the nest within 48 hrs of the last egg that hatches which means there is an extremely high chance that she will abandon those eggs.
If you tried to finish hatching them then tried to give her the chicks she would either reject them or they would get left behind when she took the brood off the nest because they'd be too small to keep up with the older chicks.
You should block off her nest so the other hens cannot bother her. You will have to manage her broody breaks. I would remove her twice daily and wait for her to do what she needs to do then block her off in the nest when she returns.
 
I've had birds sit for 6 weeks and they've been fine. I don't break my broodies - I trust they know when to quit. I've also had bantams nesting on a big ancient tree and they've been up there for months, nipping down for a snack in the mornings when I feed the others. Occasionally we've had to rescue chicks but that's a whole other story (crazy chickens)!

Broodies accumulate a big fat layer to sustain them while they sit so your girl will be fine.

They fixate on the location of the nest, not the eggs when they go broody. The only thing you could try would be to move her just on dark to somewhere completely different where she cannot see her old nest. Hopefully she will wake up and assume that's where she's always been. But it doesn't always work.

Otherwise you might have to figure out a way of blocking/netting her nest off from the others. Watch the others when she does hatch her egg/s as the others may attack it if she isn't high in the pecking order. You might have to keep them separated but within view of the others for at least a week. That's what I do as it gives the chicks time to really bond with their mother so they know who to follow.
 

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