Hatching out chicks with a broody hen

[urlocalcrazychickenlady]

I have a broody hen and so I’m going to try to hatch out some eggs. Any tips??

Also, my rooster is an Americana/New Hampshire Red. If I hatch an egg from my Prairie Bluebell Egger and it’s a pullet, will she lay blue eggs as well?

Thanks in advance!

 

[50-45-1]

Hi, as far as egg color of the offspring it's hard to say. When breeds are mixed like your rooster anything possible. Americans lay lots of colors, tending tword greenish. New hampshire reds lay brown eggs. Your Prairie bluebell egger is also a crossbreed between white leghorn and arauconas. So blue or white eggs are possible. Or any shade in-between!
As far as preparing to hatch chicks from a broody, there is lots of information on this site. Including an article I wrote on eggs and hatching.
Please read it!
GUIDE TO THE SELECTION, STORAGE AND HANDLING OF CHICKEN HATCHING EGGS

 

[Debbie292d]

Do you already have eggs to put under her? If so, I'd go ahead and put them in front of her and let her pull them in. I'm guessing she could sit on about 8 eggs and cover them all.

I would mark those with a small X on each end with a pencil so you will know if another hen lays an egg in her nest, and you can remove it. Give her the eggs all at once; do not give her one every day nor let her sit on new eggs after she's started, or you'll have an issue when they hatch. When that happens, the last ones put/laid will most likely get abandoned as she'll have chicks to take care of.

It'll take 21 days. Once hatched, she'll bring them to the food/water. If you have other chickens, that's fine, she'll keep them away from her babies, but they can all share the same feeder if you either put chick crumbles in their feeder or switch them all to an all-flock. All flock is for chicks and adults. The hens would need oyster shell in a separate dish as that's lower calcium. If you do this, make sure the chicks can't get to the oyster shell.

Happy hatching!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I agree with all of @Debbie292d 's advice except one thing. I found that pencil markings on the eggs tend to rub off over time, and for me they are hard to see without picking them up and peering closely at them. I mark my eggs with black permanent Sharpie and since I don't see well, I'm not shy or discreet about it, either! I draw a circle all the way around the equator of each hatching egg and another from end to end. I also write the date on it that I expect it to hatch. I just want to be sure I know which eggs to leave in the nest each day and which eggs to put in my egg basket!

 

[urlocalcrazychickenlady]

Thanks so much everyone for the advice!