comb and waddle changing colors while brooding?

[davimi]

I have a hen that has been sitting on eggs since monday...started with 2 eggs ..now has 6..i noticed today that her comb and waddle are very light in color...is this normal?...i have been placing food and water by her because she will not come out and play with the other chickens...if she lays eggs while she is sitting on the others...wont they all hatch at different times?

 

[LarryPQ]

They'll probably hatch within a day or two of each other.

It is bad if the broody has been sitting for only a few days and already looks *blah*. Go out tonight and check for mites/lice. They are easier to spot after dark.

Also-scramble up some eggs and other irrisistable treats, and sit there while she eats them.

 

[kano]

The first rule in this matter is.: Put all the eggs under the broody hen at the same time. If she has 2 now, 4 tomorrow and 7 day after tomorrow,, she probably will get up with the first newborns and abandon the rest of the eggs. She'll only wait about 24 hours to wait for the last chics to get out of the shell.

 

[Lollipop]

Quote:
I agree with kano. Any hen will leave the nest by day two, whether all the eggs have hatched or not. Check her for lice and check her stool for worms. You can see worms, if they are in the stool, but you need to look at her vent and under her tail with a flashlight, after dark to see lice, or mites. To worm her, mix cayenne pepper into her food to turn it rusty looking. Chickens don`t have heat resceptors like other animals, but worms do. repeat in 10 days to get the hatchlings. It is safe to dust her with Sevin dust. Be sure to dust the nest also. I hope I don`t have to tell you to do all the dusting and louse checking at night with as little stress on the hen as possible. While you`re at it, why don`t you pull all those eggs she has and replace them with fresh eggs. You will have much better results. Good luck............Pop