Co-Parenting?

[Clodill4rel]

So update our main broody girl kiwi she jumped on n off the 4 eggs today teaching the chicks to eat n drink and such….sprinkles didn’t wanna be in there at all today either! I decided to take the eggs tonight and I checked them they are all in the incubator but I am totally guessing on how old from candling I believe they are 13-15 days old and so I set our incubator nurture right 360 on 14 in hopes this works for lockdown….. I am guessIng tho…. You all were right I think hormones and the chicks needing her to help them learn she felt maybe they were not going to hatch…. she prob would have sat on them tonight but I saw her changing today and sprinkles did too. I really also went to bed Lastnight thinking what if the older baby chicks peck on the ones that pip in another week and kill them or something ! I just am wanting to be the most cautious because we want them all to live! Also I will have to figure out how to integrate these ones being 13 or so days later ! Uhggg

 

[DobieLover]

So update our main broody girl kiwi she jumped on n off the 4 eggs today teaching the chicks to eat n drink and such….sprinkles didn’t wanna be in there at all today either! I decided to take the eggs tonight and I checked them they are all in the incubator but I am totally guessing on how old from candling I believe they are 13-15 days old and so I set our incubator nurture right 360 on 14 in hopes this works for lockdown….. I am guessIng tho…. You all were right I think hormones and the chicks needing her to help them learn she felt maybe they were not going to hatch…. she prob would have sat on them tonight but I saw her changing today and sprinkles did too. I really also went to bed Lastnight thinking what if the older baby chicks peck on the ones that pip in another week and kill them or something ! I just am wanting to be the most cautious because we want them all to live! Also I will have to figure out how to integrate these ones being 13 or so days later ! Uhggg

You cannot have a staggered hatch with a hen. The natural way a hen hatches chicks is she lays her eggs in her nest daily or whatever until there are enough in there as far as she is concerned THEN she starts to incubate them. They all need to start hatching at around the same time.
If you want a hen to set, YOU need to be in control of which eggs she is allowed to incubate and they all need to be placed under her on the same day.
Good luck with the late chicks. It is unlikely (but not impossible) that she will accept them once she mobile with her chicks. And late chicks cannot keep up with chicks almost a week older than them. Hopefully your second girl might stick around to take them.

 

[Clodill4rel]

Since we live in Las Vegas I am wondering about humidity. Since the eggs I decided to take and start in the incubator should I be doing them as a dry hatch? Is it ok to bring them in at this point and do humidity like the incubator does it? They are at 50% now…. Does it mess up the chicks in anyway?

 

[janiedoe]

The mother hen keeps the eggs humid and warm by plucking the feathers out of herself. I'd run the incubator with 40% humidity, and then up it to 65 to 70% for hatch.

 

[Clodill4rel]

The mother hen keeps the eggs humid and warm by plucking the feathers out of herself. I'd run the incubator with 40% humidity, and then up it to 65 to 70% for hatch.

I have not seen that Behavior here from her she’s hatched twice ….I have not increased the humidity since placing them it has been for today 47-48.

 

[Clodill4rel]

The mother hen keeps the eggs humid and warm by plucking the feathers out of herself. I'd run the incubator with 40% humidity, and then up it to 65 to 70% for hatch.

We have been very humid here for vegas this year Un like anything for over 10 years…

 

[janiedoe]

We have been very humid here for vegas this year Un like anything for over 10 years…

Seems weather in general has been unlike anytime before. Lol. We are very humid always, and I run my incubator dry until the last 3 days. I hope you have good luck with your hatch.

 

[Clodill4rel]

I wanted to give you all an update! All 4 of the eggs we brought inside hatched and yest we integrated them back to the 2.5 week older 4 with broody mama KIWI and it WORKED! They all slept together lastnight and have been feeding out of the nesting coop this morning. She totally took the other 4 how amazing is this I could not be happier. We did not know what to do with the other 4 bc of that age gap and it’s simply amazing what’s goin on yest and today!! Imma also throw in what my daughter does with her hen sprinkles lol I know you all will love it

 

[janiedoe]

I wanted to give you all an update! All 4 of the eggs we brought inside hatched and yest we integrated them back to the 2.5 week older 4 with broody mama KIWI and it WORKED! They all slept together lastnight and have been feeding out of the nesting coop this morning. She totally took the other 4 how amazing is this I could not be happier. We did not know what to do with the other 4 bc of that age gap and it’s simply amazing what’s goin on yest and today!! Imma also throw in what my daughter does with her hen sprinkles lol I know you all will love it

Last photo is priceless!❤