Chicken is laying but not broody

[sweetappleacres]

I don't know if I'm supposed to gather the eggs as she goes and then place them under her when she gets broody or if I leave them in the nest. I've been getting both answers. I know they're fertilized bc I see the tuffs of feathers everywhere & I've seen the rooster mounted on one of the 3 hens. She's just not showing signs of brooding. This is my first go around. So I don't know anything! Help....

 

[Fred's Hens]

It is not that often that a hen goes broody. Some breeds almost never do. Don't expect broodiness. It just happens when it happens. There will be time to place eggs under for a day or two following her committing to the process.

Meanwhile just gather eggs and eat them.

 

[sweetappleacres]

But they're silkies, which are known for broodiness. When I got her a couple weeks ago she had about 5-6 eggs she was brooding. This is so confusing.

 

[Fred's Hens]

There is nothing automatic about broodiness. They sometimes stop and start, start and stop, but you are right. Silkies are rather famous for their broodiness. If you say you just got her? Give her some time to make the adjustments of a new place. All in good time. Her time.

 

[sweetappleacres]

alright. I will do that. I'll collect the eggs in the meantime. Thanks!

 

[chickengeorgeto]

But they're silkies, which are known for broodiness. When I got her a couple weeks ago she had about 5-6 eggs she was brooding. This is so confusing.

Moving her likely broke the hens broody spell.

Try this.
Put a thick piece of sod in her nest box, grass side down. keep the sod moist. A layer of wheat straw makes good nest material and the sod holds moisture to keep the humidity in the hatching ZONE. Give your broody 3 or 4 infertile eggs with big Xs marked on them, You want to give her the idea that this nest is where you want her to lay and sit.

Pick up the eggs you want to hatch every day, in cold weather pick them up twice a day. Mark each new egg with a #2 lead pencil noting the hen who laid the egg and the date she laid it. Every egg goes into a standard egg carton that is kept in a cool dark place with high humidity. 60 to 50 degrees f. and 80% humidity is about right. The egg cartons are stored on their sides with one end at a steep upward angel, then once or three time a day the egg cartons or what ever they are stored in (like a coke cooler) is moved from end A to end B or the alternating end. A brick under one end of the cooler works well to elevate the eggs. This prevents the embryo from becoming fixed in one possession by light and gravity. The chick embryo wants to orient itself to the light but if the eggs are moved daily they never get a chance to get fixed on the light. In nature the hen shuffles her eggs every time she lays. When the embryo becomes fixed on the light it sticks to the egg membrane and dies. Raising alternate ends of the egg carton keeps the embryo in motion and helps prevent this. You can also rotate the egg carton on its axis 180 degrees every day. The dark helps prevent the chick embryo from fixing on the light. Always keep a few nest eggs in the laying box so that when the hen goes broody she will set right away.

If the brood hen sits hard for 3 days straight, remove the nest eggs the third night and replace the nest eggs with the 12 to 15 freshest eggs that you wish to hatch. She needs her own little pen to protect her from varmints as well as other chickens. Keep a little food in her pen as well as fresh water at all times. You can tell if the broody has come off the nest to eat and drink by taking a big sniff of the air. Brood hens hold their stool and when they do turn loose it is a big gob of smelly chicken mess. Keep the nest box somewhere where it won't flood. Always move the entire nest box and never try to move just the hen. At day 10 or 12 candle the eggs and remove all eggs that are not developing and be sure all the eggs you keep were marked, especially if blood lines are important. If hatching in hot weather, when you candle the eggs drizzle no more than a half cup of water onto one corner of the sod nest base. DO NOT WET THE EGGS or get the nest sloppy. You just want to keep the earth damp so the biddies can hop out of the egg like pop corn popping.. Good luck.

 

[sweetappleacres]

Could you give me examples of this cool dark place to place the eggs?

 

[Crooked-Creek]

The inside of an ice chest works as a cool dark place for us. In the hot summer we rotate small frozen water bottles to help keep the temperature cool inside the ice chest. We place the water bottles in such a way that they don't come in contact with the eggs that we am saving. We place the eggs in cartons in the bottom of the ice chest and then place empty cartons between the frozen water bottle and the eggs.

 

[sweetappleacres]

So then you obviously keep the ice chest outside?

 

[Crooked-Creek]

Wherever works the best for you. We sometimes keep them in an area in our house. It will be easier to keep the temperature regulated in the house. In the spring, we leave the fertile eggs we collect and are saving in the barn and add frozen little water bottles, if the outside temperature gets above 80. Just try to keep the fertile eggs your gathering around 50 to 60 degree's to protect their fertility. The eggs you gather will start loosing their fertility after about a week. You will probably only need 12 to 16 eggs to place under your hen. If your hen doesn't go broody, these eggs will need to be disposed of, after about 10 days. Make sure you mark and date your eggs with a pencil so you know witch eggs are the oldest.