Hatching Chicks and Raising Them

[Chickenman16]

Okay, so we have this broody bird who has been laying on about eight eggs for the last two weeks. I am thinking sometime this week that I should start seeing some baby chicks. Is it a good idea for the hen to hatch them herself, or do we need do hatch it separate? My second question is if it is a fine idea for the hen to hatch, after it hatches should I separate the chicks into a brooder until they grow feathers? Please let me know.

 

[hawcer]

Usually eggs will hatch at about 3 weeks(21 days).

I'd let the mother try to do her job first...if that doesn't work, put them in a brooder for at least month. Once they hatch, she might not like the idea of you taking away her children

 

[ozark_chickies]

21 days is the norm for eggs to hatch, however my banty eggs sometimes hatch on day 18. I would leave the eggs for mom to hatch, and let her raise the chicks. Is there some reason you don't want her to take care of her babies? Most hens will do a great job of mothering their chicks, and do a better job of it than we do in a brooder.

 

[Wildflower_VA]

It takes around 21 days for chicks to hatch, so you have another week to go. Do you know for sure that the eggs are fertile?? You do have a rooster? A broody hen knows just how to hatch out chicks and how to care for them. They have been doing a fine job of it for thousands of years. When we put chicks in a brooder with a heat light and try as humans to raise them, we are cheating the chicks out of all the things a natural mama hen teaches them to do like, what is good to eat and how to roost. Any chick raised outside and not under a heat lamp will feather out quicker and will be much more hardy than a heat lamp chick. Let the mama hen do what she knows how to do naturally and just make sure that she is good to the chicks after they hatch. If this is her first time being broody, she might bear watching for a few days.