Extremely new to hatching eggs...
I was informed that my broody hens could co-exist in the coop with my other hens to hatch some eggs - I have since found out this is not a good idea, as from my limited experience, the non-broody hens want to lay their eggs where my broody hens are nesting on fertile eggs
(I bought fertile bantam eggs. Beside a pullet egg that has been mixed up in the clutch of eggs, there is no way of mistaking whose egg is whose).
I candled them after 6 days of resting under my broody hens - to my amazement and joy
some eggs were fertile and 1 or 2 were not. I have still got to candle them all as I only candled a few because I'm an extremely impatient person
I've just come back from checking my broody hens and eggs to find 1 smashed and it looks like another has a fracture in it
I have tried to move the clutch and 1 of my broody eggs to a different location in the coop, but she had no interest in sitting on the eggs until I put her and the clutch back to one of the nesting boxes the eggs get passed around from
(when 1 broody hen jumps off her eggs the other broody hen steals them - I don't mind as long as they keep them all warm)
At the end of this adventure I at least hope to get 1 or 2 chicks out of this clutch - I regularly check on my broody girls and 'their' eggs.
If I'm lucky enough to get a chick or 2 is it advisable to remove the chicks from the coop? Do I need to also remove the 'mothers' too? I've heard the bigger hens may peck at them.
I was informed that my broody hens could co-exist in the coop with my other hens to hatch some eggs - I have since found out this is not a good idea, as from my limited experience, the non-broody hens want to lay their eggs where my broody hens are nesting on fertile eggs
I candled them after 6 days of resting under my broody hens - to my amazement and joy
I've just come back from checking my broody hens and eggs to find 1 smashed and it looks like another has a fracture in it
I have tried to move the clutch and 1 of my broody eggs to a different location in the coop, but she had no interest in sitting on the eggs until I put her and the clutch back to one of the nesting boxes the eggs get passed around from
At the end of this adventure I at least hope to get 1 or 2 chicks out of this clutch - I regularly check on my broody girls and 'their' eggs.
If I'm lucky enough to get a chick or 2 is it advisable to remove the chicks from the coop? Do I need to also remove the 'mothers' too? I've heard the bigger hens may peck at them.
