Day 20 of hatching eggs under broody

[MrShax]

Hi all,

I have some eggs under a broody hen that has been sitting on the very well for 3 weeks It is on day 20 tomorrow, I have kept a good eye on them and have been candling them. All in good sight.

I am just wondering how and what to do when the chicks have hatched out of the eggs? Do I remove the chicks from under the hen and put them in a warm place? separate from the hen? The broody and the eggs are already on a warm and dry place just wondering do I need to do anything? Or shall I leave the hen to it? Is there anything I need to do? Apart from once all the chicks are hatched I move them to another broody coop just for them?

Any advice will be much appreciated.

Thanks

 

[nchls school]

Hi all,

I have some eggs under a broody hen that has been sitting on the very well for 3 weeks It is on day 20 tomorrow, I have kept a good eye on them and have been candling them. All in good sight.

I am just wondering how and what to do when the chicks have hatched out of the eggs? Do I remove the chicks from under the hen and put them in a warm place? separate from the hen? The broody and the eggs are already on a warm and dry place just wondering do I need to do anything? Or shall I leave the hen to it? The hen will take good care of the chicks. Is there anything I need to do? Water, chick starter, and a safe environment.Apart from once all the chicks are hatched I move them to another broody coop just for them? This is something often debated. I put my broody hen and chicks in a pen by themselves until the chicks are well able to get away from others of the flock; about a month,

Any advice will be much appreciated.

Thanks

 

[MrShax]

thank you. much appreciated.

 

[Mr birdman]

If the hen is anything like mine she will run any other hen or cock that get to close away in short order most are very protective of there chicks, if you have a space to move her to then go ahead and move her as this will give her some time without having to be chasing other birds away.

 

[lazy gardener]

Not all broodies are as aggressive as they need to be. My broody is low on the pecking order. She will run off most of the rest of the flock, but there are a few who initially took great pleasure in tormenting her, and getting between her and her babies. I started her in a broody pen, and one of the nasty girls even grabbed a baby by the toes and tried to pull it under the door. (I should have put her in a crock pot) But... decided to wait it out. It's been a bit of work. After a few days, I moved Mama and babies to a tractor during the day, then back to the broody pen for safety at night. Then progressed to letting Mama and babies out to free range with the flock. Babies are now 4 weeks old, and for the most part integrated with the whole flock. It's fun to see them all head into the coop to go to bed at night. They are still sleeping in the cat crate in the broody pen. I have the babies trained to the crate so I can move them easily to the tractor in the morning. I still have to do a fair amount of babysitting b/c of recent hawk predation.