Chaos! Please help

[Joanndavid]

I have a chaotic mess going on right now! I guess that I will start from the beginning: We had three hens and a silky rooster. The hens are black Orpington and. My daughters decided that we should incubate eggs. So we collected about 30 eggs and Incubated them. About 23 of those hatched. During this time we had our first ever hen sit on eggs. She ended up sitting on 18 eggs (didn’t realize that the other chickens were laying eggs under her). She hatched four of those eggs and by the time her eggs, hatched, the incubator was empty, so I put the rest of the eggs in the incubator. 10 more hatched. so we ended up with about 33 chicks. About half of them were roosters and we have gotten rid of all but three of them, we still have the silky rooster that makes four. Now we have six hens sitting on eggs, but they fight over eggs nests, and now 7 chicks have hatched, and I don’t think they even know who are who’s. Every time hen gets up, a different hen runs in there and sits on her eggs and chicks help me please.

 

[Joanndavid]

Sorry , our third hen, that we still have, is a gold-laced Wyandotte

 

[muddy75]

@Wyorp Rock @Eggcessive

 

[Ridgerunner]

Welcome to the forum, glad you joined.

My first suggestion is to stop hatching eggs. Don't start any more. Mark the eggs that are already there and then collect any new eggs and eat them, sell them, give them away, or cook them and give them back to the chickens to eat.

What do you want with chickens? How many do you want? What are your goals. Where do you want to wind up? We can help you get there but we need to know where you want to go.

 

[muddy75]

Welcome to BYC!

 

[RadEggs]

I'd put some of those hens in broody jail. That's way too many broody hens at once!

 

[Joanndavid]

Welcome to the forum, glad you joined.

My first suggestion is to stop hatching eggs. Don't start any more. Mark the eggs that are already there and then collect any new eggs and eat them, sell them, give them away, or cook them and give them back to the chickens to eat.

What do you want with chickens? How many do you want? What are your goals. Where do you want to wind up? We can help you get there but we need to know where you want to go.

I like the thought of the hens having their own babies and I can give away chickens when I have to many, but what should I do right now about all 6 of these hens. I do have a separate area in my barn that I can put the. Should I put all of them in there?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Welcome to the forum, glad you joined.

My first suggestion is to stop hatching eggs. Don't start any more. Mark the eggs that are already there and then collect any new eggs and eat them, sell them, give them away, or cook them and give them back to the chickens to eat.

What do you want with chickens? How many do you want? What are your goals. Where do you want to wind up? We can help you get there but we need to know where you want to go.

I agree.

As to what to do about the 6hens, break the broodiness.

 

[Joanndavid]

I'd put some of those hens in broody jail. That's way too many broody hens at once!

Broody jail sounds cool. How is this done?

I agree.

As to what to do about the 6hens, break the broodiness.

how do I do that?

 

[Silkiebegins]

I have the answer give me a sec