Hatching Under a Broody Hen

[gimmie birdies]

this is day 8 if that is helpful see the nice veins?

 

[stephcraig78]

The first set is the ones we can see veins and some developement but little to no movement. We did pull four so far. Think one or two may of been in those pics. The second bunch of pics are all ones we think are about 14-15 days along. All had lots of veins and lots of movement so know they are still developing. And the last set are the ones we are guessing to be around 16-18 days along. They are very full and dark and move around a lot. The camper sits on the ground and is closed right on three sides. The front raises and we close it at night. So I don’t think they are exposed to any wind. We put straw inside as well to help insulate.

 

[gimmie birdies]

sounds good. Good luck.

 

[stephcraig78]

Ok I’ll check again tonight and if I don’t see movement or very strong veins I pull them? Some had the blood ring so we pulled them right off. And a couple never got any veins so they went too.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

During the first time my hen went broody, I HAD to interfere or else she'd waste away on the nest as she refused to take breaks..... Every 2-3 days I also took her off the nest so she'd poop, though of course on hatch day she decided to take a poop break herself....

It is the gold standard for sitting hens to leave the nest only once every 3 or 4 days to vacate their bowles, grab a snack, a sip of water, and maybe take a quick dust bath. If you will allow a sitting hen to fulfill her role with as little human interference as possible you will soon be amazed at how much a hen instinctively knows about sitting on and hatching eggs and how little we humans know or understand about the whole process. If you positively, absolutely, must gawk at your sitting hen then by all means do your peeping Tom imitation when she leaves the nest on her own to do the 4 things I mentioned in my first sentence.

Hi! So it’s day 21 for most of the eggs under our broody Spitzhauben.

As for me knowing that you had a staggered hatch the beans were spilled in the first sentence, in the first paragraph, of the first post. It may be a good idea that if you don't want feedback to help you with raising your chickens that you refrain from asking questions.

 

[Arya28]

Hey I hope I’m posting in right place for this but here’s what I have going on. I live in mid Missouri. Temp today is 30 degrees f. We have a small mixed flock of a few chickens and 3 turkey. Two hens are silkie and we have a sizzle rooster. One of the silkie hens we call Smokey and the roo are like a little married couple. They are constant companions. They sleep together in their own space inside an old truck camper away from all the other birds. Anyway they have breed many times and about 2 weeks ago she went totally broody on a clutch of about 17 eggs. We found out a few were from the other silkie who snuck in her nest and left unfertlized eggs. We have close watch on her and the eggs including several candlings. We are now getting close to hatch time. I need as much input from you all about what I should do. She has always been outside but this is her first winter as she is not even a year old yet. I am worried about the cold. But also know it is harder on them to move them to warmer place then try to move back to cold. When it comes time for the hatching will she be able to provide the warmth and humidity needed? Should I move her box into garage where it’s protected but not much difference in temperature? Thinking I should prepare a brooder box-if so how do I make a basic one? I’m gonna post a few pics of the least developed then mid developed and finally the ones we think are closest to hatching. Please help me with any tips or suggestions you may have. Thank you all in advance!!!

Hi! I don’t mind at all you posting you’re broody questions here, as there are a lot of people giving great advice! This isn’t like an “official” incubating and hatching thread though, so you might want to post it there as well to get even more advice! Just so you can get more people to look at it, or even for future reference, you can go here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/incubating-hatching-eggs.5/ and then click “start thread”. More people may be able to see your question that way

As for your question about whether to move thm or not- that is EXACTLY what we were debating with our broody hen, because our barn isn’t heated. We ultimately decided (because our hen had 19 eggs under her) that moving them to where it’s not frigid might be safer for all of them- mostly because we didn’t know if they would all be able to fit under her to be warm enough. If your hen only has a few eggs, keeping her in the barn might be just fine. But we also moved them so when mama gets up to eat wet hatching chicks didn’t get too chilled. So they’re in our garage with a heat lamp (it’s not too hot- just enough to keep mama warm enough to heat them). It’s ultimately got to be your decision though. We didn’t want to move her, but thought it’d be the safest option for the chicks. As for brooders, I definitely recommend YouTube! There are lots of great suggestions on there.

 

[stephcraig78]

Thank you!! I will try starting thread like you suggested. I guess I’m just nervous and anxious with this being both the hen and my first times! Thanks for the YouTube tip also. Think I will move her to garage where it’s easier to keep an eye on her and babies when they hatch. I have a couple heat lamps I can put up that would just keep it slightly warmer not heat the whole place. Take any chance of a chill getting to babies. She is a silkie so not a lot of room for this many eggs. I think after tonight her number will be lower because of culling under developed eggs. No need to take space and heat away from the ones that are developing good. I absolutely love that I found this site and all the wonderful people here. We have only had our flock for two years now and it seems like I have questions or things to share almost everyday. And now that we are trying hatching it will no doubt be something we continue. I really want to try hatching some turkey eggs from our trio. Two hens and a young tom. Keeping fingers crossed we will have the chance come spring. Here’s a pic of dad-sizzle. And mom to be- Smokey-silkie

 

[Arya28]

It is the gold standard for sitting hens to leave the nest only once every 3 or 4 days to vacate their bowles, grab a snack, a sip of water, and maybe take a quick dust bath. If you will allow a sitting hen to fulfill her role with as little human interference as possible you will soon be amazed at how much a hen instinctively knows about sitting on and hatching eggs and how little we humans know or understand about the whole process. If you positively, absolutely, must gawk at your sitting hen then by all means do your peeping Tom imitation when she leaves the nest on her own to do the 4 things I mentioned in my first sentence.



As for me knowing that you had a staggered hatch the beans were spilled in the first sentence, in the first paragraph, of the first post. It may be a good idea that if you don't want feedback to help you with raising your chickens that you refrain from asking questions.

Hello,

I don’t think you’re understanding what I’m saying, or your just choosing to ignore it- I really don’t care much either way. It’s day 21 for “most of the eggs” means our hen stored eggs for days before we knew. We counted 21 days from the day we found her on them. Hence, 21 for most of the eggs. Most people seem to be getting this.

“Spilled the beans”. I don’t know who you think you are, but I strongly suggest you either chill your vibes or find somewhere else to post. There have been so many awesome people posting great advice here, this is a place for support and advice. I would suggest you manage your own flock before coming here with your uppity-ness and negativity. I don’t need to prove anything to you.

Thank you.

Wishing all the best to you and your flock.

 

[Arya28]

9 beautiful healthy chicks so far! Fingers crossed for more!

 

[song of joy]

Thank you!! I will try starting thread like you suggested. I guess I’m just nervous and anxious with this being both the hen and my first times! Thanks for the YouTube tip also. Think I will move her to garage where it’s easier to keep an eye on her and babies when they hatch. I have a couple heat lamps I can put up that would just keep it slightly warmer not heat the whole place. Take any chance of a chill getting to babies. She is a silkie so not a lot of room for this many eggs. I think after tonight her number will be lower because of culling under developed eggs. No need to take space and heat away from the ones that are developing good. I absolutely love that I found this site and all the wonderful people here. We have only had our flock for two years now and it seems like I have questions or things to share almost everyday.

Just a couple of risks you should be aware of - the risk of moving her this close to hatch and the risk of a staggered hatch. Some hens do just fine being moved and others will try very hard to get back to the original nest location, abandoning their clutch of eggs. Sometimes it's safer to move the hen right after the chicks have hatched, but you'll just have to use your best judgment as it's your flock.

Staggered hatch - it sounds like the eggs may be 3 to 4 days apart developmentally. If that's the case, she may get off the nest with the hatched chicks when they are 24 to 48 hours old, leaving the rest of the eggs to chill and die. If so, you may have to let the unhatched eggs go or incubate them yourself. Other hens will stay on the nest too long - trying to hatch the remaining eggs while the vulnerable, already-hatched chicks are left to fend for themselves. Just be aware of these possible scenarios so you're prepared to make management decisions as the need arises.