can you move a hen & eggs at day 20?

[technodoll]

My silkie hen was sitting on a bunch of eggs for 24 hours, I moved her to a safe spot last night but she abandoned the eggs - as I thought she would.

She is determined to sit in one of the nesting boxes to hatch some eggs.

If I give her a couple and leave her be, can I move her at around day 20 just before the chicks hatch?

Will she still abandon the eggs at that point?

Anybody have experience with this?

 

[Tuffoldhen]

Quote:
How long did she abandon them for? Sometimes when you move a broody and her nest she will make a fuss for awhile but will settle back down on the eggs. Just have patience for an hour or so. I always move them at night when she is wanting to sleep more than fuss. Can you put her somewhere like a wire dog crate with the eggs in a nest? Food and water close by. I wouldn't go moving her on day 20 but that's just my opinion. You could let her hatch them and then take the chicks. They usually don't get up with the chicks til they think their hatch is complete.

 

[technodoll]

I moved her and the eggs last night and all went fine, but when I checked in on her at 9am this morning she was frantic to get out of the pen I had put her in (just a sectioned off corner of the coop, she could still see her flock and all), she didn't touch the food or water I had set out for her and the eggs were stone cold so I assumed she had gotten off them for a few hours.

That's six lovely eggs that are going to the dogs...

Around 3pm today one of my sexlinks laid a nice small egg and my silkie promptly confiscated it, so I will let her sit on it and we'll see what happens. I will give her one or two more tomorrow but that will be it.

Since she's in a nesting box and won't budge, if any chicks hatch that's where it will happen BUT I will then have to immediatley move her to the sectioned-off corner of the pen where the heat lamp is and where the flock can't get at the babies.

Would such a move make her ignore the wee ones and then they would freeze??

I'm at a loss!