First time brooder sitting on possibly fertilized eggs. Question!

[jwyles]

my little bantam that started laying around the beginning of October went broody. She was already broody for about a week or so when my neighbor gave me four eggs to try to hatch for him. My questions are since she was already broody for a while what are the odds that she will sit on these for as long as it takes to hatch them? Also his rooster is only about 6 months old and his pullets are no more than 7 months old. How likely is it that these eggs have been fertilized? And... if she does hatch them how long should I let them stay with her before giving them back to him? Other than that, I want to point out that this is my first flock (all 6-8 months old or so) and so I have little experience with chickens much less hatching eggs and allowing chicks raised with an existing flock. Any and all tips to help with hatching and rearing process would be greatly appreciated.

 

[JaeG]

She should sit as long as it takes to hatch them and the fact she's been broody for a week shows you she's hopefully serious, but seeing as it's her first time there's a chance she might give up. Make sure you know when hatch day is and just keep an eye on her. Some like to sit but don't want to look after the chicks.

If she isn't separated from the rest of the flock you'll have to mark your neighbours eggs as your other hens will add theirs.

If you candle the eggs after 5-7 days you'll be able to see if they are fertile or not as there will be developing veins. I don't know about rooster fertility though, but if the cockerel is active I'd assume he's able to fertilize.

Hens generally look after the chicks for 5-8 weeks after hatch. Don't forget a shallow water dish and put everyone on chick starter - unmedicated so you can still eat your other hens eggs.

 

[jwyles]

She should sit as long as it takes to hatch them and the fact she's been broody for a week shows you she's hopefully serious, but seeing as it's her first time there's a chance she might give up. Make sure you know when hatch day is and just keep an eye on her. Some like to sit but don't want to look after the chicks.

If she isn't separated from the rest of the flock you'll have to mark your neighbours eggs as your other hens will add theirs.

If you candle the eggs after 5-7 days you'll be able to see if they are fertile or not as there will be developing veins. I don't know about rooster fertility though, but if the cockerel is active I'd assume he's able to fertilize.

Hens generally look after the chicks for 5-8 weeks after hatch. Don't forget a shallow water dish and put everyone on chick starter - unmedicated so you can still eat your other hens eggs.

Perfect! My neighbor plans to candle the eggs in a few days as he has experience with this. I've marked the eggs 1,2,3&4 and the rooster is crowing and mounting the hens. I guess I'm getting my hopes up but not sure if I should. Would it be ok to put mom and babies in a separate area once they are hatched to ensure babies get plenty of feed and water and don't get picked on?

 

[jwyles]

So is it normal for first time Broody pullets to successfully hatch their first clutch or does it usually fail?

 

[Sublight]

So is it normal for first time Broody pullets to successfully hatch their first clutch or does it usually fail?

I have a silkie (DeDe) that hatched 4 out of 5 eggs. It was her first clutch to sit on. So far she has done great. She is a great mom and i love watching her with the babies.
Today she tickled me, i was letting everyone free range and another silkie got too close to the babies and DeDe went all "rocky balboa" on her. She seriously opened a can of whoop @$$ on the other chicken.

Just make sure your broody chicken has food and water really close. She will go out and get food/water when needed. Dont worry, they dont eat much when broody.

As a side note, she hatched all of her eggs at 19 days. I went out on day 20, and they were all hatched and dried. I could hear them peep. I put my hand under her and removed the shells. She bit me, but come on... She is a silkie, what is she going to do.

 

[JaeG]

So is it normal for first time Broody pullets to successfully hatch their first clutch or does it usually fail?

If she's got good broody instincts she'll be a star. It is unusual for hens to kill their chicks and bantams are generally very reliable mothers.

You can separate her once they are hatched if you want to. If she's out of sight of the other hens you may have to reintegrate her depending on how long she's away from them. There's nothing cuter than watching a mother hen interacting with her babies.

 

[jwyles]

I have a silkie (DeDe) that hatched 4 out of 5 eggs. It was her first clutch to sit on. So far she has done great. She is a great mom and i love watching her with the babies.
Today she tickled me, i was letting everyone free range and another silkie got too close to the babies and DeDe went all "rocky balboa" on her. She seriously opened a can of whoop @$$ on the other chicken.

Just make sure your broody chicken has food and water really close. She will go out and get food/water when needed. Dont worry, they dont eat much when broody.

As a side note, she hatched all of her eggs at 19 days. I went out on day 20, and they were all hatched and dried. I could hear them peep. I put my hand under her and removed the shells. She bit me, but come on... She is a silkie, what is she going to do.

I love it! How lucky did you get with such a good little mommy! Hoping to have a similar story! Except my sweetie belle (kids named her lol) is a frizzle Cochin bantam and has yet to be even the least bit mean and I hope it stays this way. I'm really hoping to get some babies! Thank you for sharing!

 

[jwyles]

If she's got good broody instincts she'll be a star. It is unusual for hens to kill their chicks and bantams are generally very reliable mothers.

You can separate her once they are hatched if you want to. If she's out of sight of the other hens you may have to reintegrate her depending on how long she's away from them. There's nothing cuter than watching a mother hen interacting with her babies.

The are I've got to put her in is actually attached to the coop so she wouldn't really be moved there would actually be a barrier go up between her little fam and the other girls but they'd be able to interact and see each other but the babies would be safe. Thank you for replying! I'm very excited. If she hatches these for him I may have to find some fertilized eggs for her to hatch for me.

 

[jwyles]

I guess I forgot to update this post. I thought I had but oh well. Anyway my girl hatched me two babies. Both cinnamon queen cockerels. They went to my neighbors to be kept in a brooder for a little while to be sure they stayed safe & warm. And this Sunday one of them is coming to live with me & my flock. Never had a roo and not really supposed to, but all the other in town chicken keepers are doing it so I'm going to join the crowd and give it a try. The other boy is going to live with my sister in law & her 5 girl chickies in the country! I don't think I could have asked for a better ending for these two little fellows. Anyway, here was a pic taken the day after they were hatched and I will updat this post with a current pic when I get my boy! BTW Their names are Rex & Roux. Yay!!!!

 

[jwyles]

Oh and also... the rest of the story. Not only did my girl hatch two but she hatched them on day 20 which I didn't even know was possible. I was so shocked when I found these little fluffy things. I left the other two eggs for several more days but no lunch. I opened them and a third had a fully formed chick, but there was a super slught crack in the shell and I don't know if this contributed to its death or if the chick had began trying to hatch and just wasn't successful. Anyway that was very sad and disappointing. The chick was actually a little pullet too. (They are sex linked.) the fourth eggs was rotten and I don't think was ever even fertilized. There was no development at all. So my Sweetie Belle really did an exceptional job for her first time setting & I could not be more please!