For Experienced Broody Hatchers!!! I have a Question or two

[Cackel Shack]

Yeah, I should try putting my broody hen in a brood jail, she’d have to be locked in for a few days to break her brood, though.

I actually have a problem with TOO many broody hens sitting on their fertilized eggs. I don’t need more chickens. Ha! My 2 roosters are very fertile. I wonder if there is much of a market for fertile eggs and what to charge for a dozen? Do you know?

 

[preppingmom]

How much experience do you want? My experience is with free range chickens; some twenty years worth. I have never put eggs under a broody though. They've always sat on their own, plus donations from time to time.

1) Most do. It can get messy from day 18 if the hen doesn't detect any movement in the egg.
Rule 1. Don't candle but I see you've understood that. Don't disturb or other wise play with the eggs. I guess you've got that sorted as well.

2) Some hens roll them out of the nest. Some just leave them. Second and third time broodies tend to roll the duds out more than the first timers ime.

3) Some hens will eat them. A lot depends on at what stage the egg breaks.
I clean up because broken eggs tend to attract parasites, rats and ants. It's a strip out the nest very very carefully sometimes.

4) Yes a hen will protect her chicks but who against is more the issue. If she is a junior hen then she may not protect them very well agianst a more senior hen.
I never ever seperate a mum from her chicks. If there are problems then rehouse mum and chicks together.

5) Give an extra three days and if nothing happens bin the eggs. Some hens (most ime) will know and give up. If they don't I take the eggs away and destroy the nest, as in full clean out, relplace all bedding and if necessary, block the nest off until the broody gives up trying to sit.

You're doing great. I hope the broody does great as well.

Thank you for all of the great input! We put eggs under the hen, because by the time we caught on (first timers here), I think the hen had been broody for a bit and stopped laying. She wasn't laying any of her own, so we gave her some. She sat on them until 1 hatched and the chick started moving around. I then transferred the rest to an incubator thinking they were hours or a day or two from hatching.

We actually successfully hatched 3 out of 4 in the incubator after first time mom left nest with first chick. It took exactly a week for all to hatch. After eggs kept hatching, we separated the momma hen and for 3 nights in a row, snuck out in the dark and gave her each new chick. (slipped it under her) They were all black chicks with white chests, so I am sure that helped. She accepted them all. We now have her confined in a separate area for the time being to let the newest chicks "catch up" a bit before letting Momma hen move around freely with the other hens. The good thing is that this hen is clearly the top of the pecking order, so no other hen will bother her chicks.

We do have 2 cats who watch the chicks a lot, but are afraid of the full size chickens. I worry about cats more than anything.

 

[GigitheBackyardHerbilist]

Ive decided to let a broody hatch some fertilized eggs. This is my first ever hatch(never hatched with incubator or hen before)
Ive taken a "let nature take its course" approach to giving eggs to the broody hen. I have not candled her eggs or interfered in any way. Ive made sure she comes out at least once per day to eat, drink and poop. Here are my questions;

1- Will the broody know if some eggs are quitters?
2- If there are quitters; what will she do with them?
3- What happens if she accidently crushes one or two? Will she eat them or do I need to clean it up?
4- Will the hen protect her chicks or do I have to separate them once they have hatched?
5- What if none of my fertile eggs hatch under her? What do I do?

Sorry for all the questions. Im no chicken expert. Ive raised day old chicks(in a brooder) and kept layer hens for almost 3 years now.

I'm glad you asked them. I have some of the same questions and just had an upset and I just killed a chick in a crushed egg and I'm heart broken.

 

[Vicky Ann Painting]

Ive decided to let a broody hatch some fertilized eggs. This is my first ever hatch(never hatched with incubator or hen before)
Ive taken a "let nature take its course" approach to giving eggs to the broody hen. I have not candled her eggs or interfered in any way. Ive made sure she comes out at least once per day to eat, drink and poop. Here are my questions;

1- Will the broody know if some eggs are quitters?
2- If there are quitters; what will she do with them?
3- What happens if she accidently crushes one or two? Will she eat them or do I need to clean it up?
4- Will the hen protect her chicks or do I have to separate them once they have hatched?
5- What if none of my fertile eggs hatch under her? What do I do?

Sorry for all the questions. Im no chicken expert. Ive raised day old chicks(in a brooder) and kept layer hens for almost 3 years now.

1. Yes 2. Mine ate them or rolled them out of the nest. 3. She might, but not if you don't let her keester too many at a time. 4. We gave ours a separated small yard with a small coop just for her and her chicks until they had bonded with the flock through the common fencing. They will continue to steal eggs the other hens lay next to her. It gets confusing. I numbered the fertile ones with sharpie so I could still collect the new eggs when she gets up to run around and drop her one huge poop and eat and drink before returning to them. 4. The Hen will protect her chicks for a time. Mine went through specific God programmed phases. 5. If none of your fertile eggs hatch under after a few weeks she will kick them out or eat them. @janiedoe was a blessing from God for my first hatch. Once she taught me pipping it was smooth sailing from there with a few pep talks. haha. Hope any or all of this helps.

 

[artbykarenehaley]

Yeah, I should try putting my broody hen in a brood jail, she’d have to be locked in for a few days to break her brood, though.

I actually have a problem with TOO many broody hens sitting on their fertilized eggs. I don’t need more chickens. Ha! My 2 roosters are very fertile. I wonder if there is much of a market for fertile eggs and what to charge for a dozen? Do you know?

In my local area, mixed breed hatching eggs are around 12$ a dozen. A breeder of barred rocks near here sells her eggs at $20 per dozen. More uncommon purebred breeds are 30 to 50$ a dozen (a specialty breeder in the next town over raises show quality chocolate and lavender orpingtons, and show quality marans).