Hatching with 2 broodies

[tommysgirl]

Soooooo... Lets find out if 1.8-2oC high on the new incubator has been killing my eggs. The dog has eaten 6 of the last 12 we tried for dinner... She loves the new incubator. Turns out there was a thermometer for taking people temperature in the cupboard. Its perfect, goes from 36-40 degrees, so accurate. Anyway bunged it in and it has been sitting at close to 40oC, no good me thinks, so have dialled it back to just under 38oC and we have 8 more eggs in there, some from all the current layers. So, waiting 3 days again. I'll let you know how they go.

And we have no broodies now, do they go broody in the winter?

Sorry about your bad luck

Yes they do go broody in the winter...not as frequently but I had two winter broodies last year.

Julie has not left the nest even though the babies have gotten out of it. She also found her golf ball and put it back in her nest. I took it back and took it totally out of the coop but Is it possible she is so committed to eggs that she won't get up with the babies? Has anyone heard of that?

The babies are not wandering off or anything and they do go back under her and she accepts them but I sure hope she will get off that nest today.

 

[ItalyChickie]

A couple developments here on the homestead. Momma and babies are doing great. Wow, what a difference between broody babies and those raised in the house! So much more alert and not sluggish at all! Quiet too, no chirping because they are hot, cold, hungry, thirsty. Mom does it all!!

That right there is exactly the reason I want broodies to raise them - even if they hatch in the bator. Huge, huge difference - and such happy babies!

OMG... you wont believe what just happened. I saw the chickens chasing each other with something dangling from one of the cockerel's beak, and I thought it was a mouse or a mole since we have mole holes all around here. I laughed and watched them play, until they got closer and then I saw it... is that a baby chick???

it was

So sorry!!! It was probably never meant to hatch or it wouldn't have happened - but still, this sort of thing is hard to watch!

So a tornado hit my home town... I don't Live there anymore because well... it's the city. My other family lives there still and they just told me. My grandmas place is flooded which never happened before. Theres damage all over town.

Bad news for my coop... barn ish... there was so much moisture from the storms that two of my chicks died within 18 hours... one died in our hands after we told God to send her home so we don't have to, and he did... I cried so hard. It was my porcelain D'uccle. The other was a silver laced sebright.

Oh no! Hope everyone else is ok!

Question:
what do you all think about giving my 2nd broody (started sitting 10 days after 1st broody) 2 eggs from the 1st nest? It would be an early hatch, on day 14ish for her, not the full 21 days. Will she accept them?

I started worrying that if she sees broody #1 with her chicks for an entire week, she might try to steal the chicks over to her side. is that a concern? maybe it would be best if they both had chicks hatch the same day. that way the chicks could (hopefully) go back and forth between mamas seamlessly.

I really need the expert advice here because I have never had a broody before and I dont quite know how they think and act!

I second what everyone else said - they don't count days, so if she is broody she will take the chicks when they come. I would separate them for hatch time too, just in case... I had a pretty bad co-hatching experience with the two broodies sharing a nest and eggs, as they tried to call away/steal chicks from one another as they were hatching. On the other hand, two other hens (yes, I had 4 at the same time) were in separate "apartments" but after a day, when they started getting out and the chicks were mingling, they decided to unite forces and co-brooded them.

I actually very much doubt she would try to steal the chicks from the other one even if she saw them around, or that the chicks would go to her if the eggs hadn't been under her - I think my main problem was them sharing the eggs and both "communicating" with the chicks/teaching them their voice while still in the egg.

Good afternoon all! Well I have one for all to ponder and please give me your thoughts on this one! I was told today that you can sex your chickens by holding them upside down and a male will fight his way back onto his feet while a female will just lay there????? I don't have the heart to do that to my chicks ( thats is just mean!!! And a good way to have them fear you?? Just my opinion!) Has anyone tried this and does it really work????

I've read a bunch of different methods based on holding/dangling and otherwise forcing chicks to do something not natural for them, and as far as I know none of them are accurate. This is highly based on their chickenalities - assuming that boys are more feisty than girls, which isn't always the case to begin with. But even if it was the case, your guess can be just as accurate observing them for an hour or so - it's easy to see the more courageous/feisty/curious chicks, those would likely be the ones who struggle more (which over here, have often been girls).

My blind baby didn't make it. It was a tough little thing but it couldn't keep up. I don't think it got cold but it looks like maybe bigger birds trampled it. I found it on its side in the coop yesterday evening.

I know some people will say I should have euthanized it from teh start but I felt it deserved a chance. Others will say I didn't do enough but I really don't have time to coddle a chicken that can't fend for itself so I gave it vitamins and left it to momma and nature. I am not surprised it didn't make it but I was hopeful that it might.

I'm really sorry! But I do agree with the approach, or learning to, in any case. I started out with the "do whatever you can to help" mentality, but then saw that those who seemed like they weren't going to make it, still didn't, all I did was delay the inevitable and something always happens, even if I'm there most of the day, in those 10 minutes I'm not watching... and it is a LOT harder to lose a chick if I spent a week caring for it (this happened last year). So yeah, learning to accept that if it can't make it under broody care, it probably was never meant to. (Remind me I said that if I ever get obsessed over a chick that is beyond help.)

Do you let the mommas and babies loose with the flock from day one? MJ is restless in the little cage with the 9 littles. I want to let her out so badly but I am afraid the babies will get themselves in trouble. What would you do?

I let them out from day 1, but separated from the rest of the flock - though only because everything else is open space and they free range, and I'm afraid babies might get spooked and hide somewhere where I might never find them. Plus, the big dogs are not too careful about where they run, even if they don't chase chickens... if I had the flock closed off, I'd probably let the broody and babies out if not from day 1, then day 2.

But it is a bit about chickenalities... currently I don't have any troublemakers in the flock, they all seem to get along with the babies, and the broodies have been high in the pecking order. (Going to be a different story with Pallina...)

OK for a week one of my hens Is broody by day and normal chicken by night...she goes in the nest to lay an egg in the morning and then sits there all day puffed up and growling pecks me when i go to gather eggs. But sleeps on the roost at night. Is it possible she is doing this just to avoid the roosters? I've got some cockerels that just started to crow and are being a pain. I need to grab them and get them ready to eat...but I haven't yet. But this egg guarding hen is getting on my nerves.

Some of mine do that for a few days before getting serious... though a week seems to be rather long. She might be just escaping after all if this keeps going on.

With my girls being bantams and either lazy, scared of heights or flight retarded, no-one has really bothered to try and get onto anything much higher than the garden edging. Cue Blondie! .... Yep, this little munchkin has decided that she is adventurous and has taken to jumping on the run gate when it is open, walking all over the top of the run and also on the coop roof.

Yesterday the little princess was sitting on the run gate, looking down at her subjects and Dusty decided that that looked like a good idea and jumped up with her; then Lulu and Cilla joined in also. Poor Tina, who has the flight skills of a brick, was running round and round the gate and you could see her little brain grinding away at how she was going to get up there also. I watched her as she eyed off the nest box and could see her thinking, if I jump onto that I can get from there to the gate ... problem being, no room on the gate! Poor Tina!

And, thank you Blondie, can't wait to see what you are going to teach them next .. maybe a bit of tree climbing, or how about some abseiling off the roof, or, if you are really game, you could try out your hunting skills on the 'big cats' in the cat run! lol

I so want a picture of that!!!! That Blondie is a troublemaker!

show stopping or not it was news and you tell it so well that the show might just stop. And since you brought it up:

Gracie Belle becomes a momma!


Little yellow boy, little red girl and little black girl

Adorable! And yay for Gracie Belle finally becoming a mom! I just melt looking at those pictures of moms with babies, so precious!

And don't hate me... I would have said the black one is a boy, if the comb is that defined at day 1.

Then again, maybe it's just the picture angle. And maybe it's not day 1? Anyway, ignore me. The Marans are adorable too!!!! That will be my next breed, though probably not until next year.

ok so.. I cannot keep away ... I was able to get a couple pics of the new baby!

peekaboo!

Ok, that is the cutest picture ever!!!!

Ignore my comments re co-broodies, I see everything is working out just fine. Too lazy to scroll back up and delete them.

In general news:

The no-car thing is an enforced lifestyle change. Our car needs a new gear box and after we got over the initial shock of the $6,000 quote; we made the decision to let her rest in peace as she also needed new shoes, registration was due, timing belt was coming due for replacement ($1,500++) brakes needed work and sadly she was not worth the money. Hubby’s hours got cut back, so we can’t afford another car so we walk. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to have a car but we are improvising with a sense of humour attached

Luckily, like you 16 paws, I don't care what people think, you do what you have to

Cilla is still chasing Tina around the place, for whatever reason and squatted for me again last night. She is also nattering away and checking out the nest boxes in the ranch (she has never laid in the Ranch though, always the Chateau). Seriously thinking she is just going straight to broody, not going to worry about the whole egg-laying thing and is looking for somewhere to raise her 'invisible' family

I totally love the cart idea too! Wish I had a goat... and a cart!
I would walk everywhere, but I am about 6km (3.5 miles I think) from the nearest store, and while I can walk, bike or even run that empty-handed, it's not that easy with a big bag of chicken feed... so for now the car is a necessity, but I love the fact there are alternative I never had thought of.

Hmm, so if Cilla does go straight to broody, are you going to give her eggs?

I guess I will just have to tell Layla she can have eggs but she has to magically turn them all into little pullets

Anyone want to bet on how that is going to go?????

No bets, but if she manages to, can you ask her to teach mine the method?

uhmmm no.


Can I join you guys??? Norma is on round 2!!! I am giving her eggs from my Olive Egger. She is the bio mom of two of my other chicks. I want to see if they are SLs but I can't tell with these two b/c I think they are the same sex...they look identical except for their head markings. Anyway I am giving her whatever I collect by the 2nd or 3rd. I just want to increase my sample size so that I know if these babies are SLs or not. oh and I want to try to hatch a few more baby ladies

Aww, I'm just a little bit ahead of you! Pallina and Chiocciola got eggs yesterday, and the rest went into the bator. Well, it's almost a hatch-along, anyway.

Which is the biggest part of my news - all the eggs are HERE!!!

As you might remember, I ended up getting them from two different people, because I had settled for Araucana (and added on some millefleur booted bantams) after not being able to find Ameraucana... and then of course I did find the Ameraucana, and had to have those too!!!!

And of course both of the sellers put in extra eggs, which means I have about 10 more than I bargained for... which also means I have to count on Chiocciola staying broody because they won't all fit in the bator in any case!

Yesterday was moving and rearranging day... I thought that if Chiocciola gave up at that point, after being moved, I'd let her be and just try to pick the least viable looking eggs (dirtier, etc... there's one with a hairline crack too, which probably won't develop) - but she stayed, and even understood right away where to go to get back to the eggs, instead of trying the old place and yelling her head off like Pallina... fortunately, she goes calm and quite as soon as I show her the eggs.

Aanyway. The hatch date should be July 19, or possibly 18 for the bantam eggs. I have 15 (!) Ameraucanas, plus one Ameracauna cross which the seller won't tell me but wants me to guess (nice guy, we got to chatting while waiting for shipment), 7 Araucana eggs (1 of which has a crack), and 11 booted bantam eggs. Yikes, that's a lot of potential chicks!

The 6 Pallina eggs under the other broody twin, Rosita, are all looking good, so I'm hoping to see 6 fluffy butts in a couple of days.

Bonnie's bubbies are growing nicely, she has been bringing them to the front yard and teaching them the short cut.... remember that ladder I took a picture of with the other chicks sitting on it? Well, she made them all take it down. (Chattered her head off until everyone did.) Only they decided it wasn't a ladder but a slide, and went down the side and straight to the ground, with less than perfect landings!

And one even came UP the stairs and then jumped OFF the balcony!!!

Nearly gave me a heart attack... but he is fine. Crazy, but fine.

Wing growth still inconclusive, but there are definitely at least a couple of boys among the Cochins... hopefully more girls than boys though!

I think that covers most of my news... even if it doesn't, I better stop here as this post has turned into a novel! Sorry about that.

Will try to catch up sooner next time! Hope everyone is having/had a great weekend!

 

[Pooman]

TG, its not bad luck, more bad management. I know where the thermometer is now, so I'll be using it.

How many days ago did the chicks hatch. Its weird she want the golf ball, often the hens discard golfballs and non viable eggs. I had one that sat for 3 days after they hatched, the poor chicks lost so much condition during that time. But its hard as you know cause your dealing with a crazy broody...

 

[tommysgirl]

Quote: you always write such inclusive warm and funny posts. I enjoy reading them

Thanks for the comments about my babies. The little black one is a black sex link. No head spot = little girl but I admit I didn't notice the comb till you pointed it out in the pic...now I have to go out there and examine her more closely.

Gracie Belle has an attitude! She starts stuff through the fence with Beakface. I hope all will be well when I move Julie Taylor in with her tomorrow I may have to figure a way to separate them in the broody pen if there is trouble.

So IC what is your current broody count?

Mine is

4 with babies...4 weeks, 11 days, 6 days and 2 days
2 on golfballs one waiting for chicks in an incubator and 1 who will get eggs in a few days.

Julie Got up with her babies today. They are running wild in the coop kicking up shavings and being super cute. She is impersonating (inchickenating) an angry feather duster and swuawking at me when I come to gawk at them...which is frequently

 

[tommysgirl]

TG, its not bad luck, more bad management. I know where the thermometer is now, so I'll be using it.

How many days ago did the chicks hatch. Its weird she want the golf ball, often the hens discard golfballs and non viable eggs. I had one that sat for 3 days after they hatched, the poor chicks lost so much condition during that time. But its hard as you know cause your dealing with a crazy broody...

Hi Pooman...the chicks were hatched in an incubator 6 days ago now but she got them night before last. She is up with them now so I was worried for no reason go figure. So far my broodies have all done a good job. Julie was on the bubble but she seems to have stepped it up today.

 

[Pooman]

Thats a normal amount of time. If it gets to 3 days, the chicks start going down hill like i saw. But to be fair to the other eggs, she needs to wait on there for a while.


And in other very very sad news. Stripey has stopped flapping his wings when he crows. Its a sad day to have that hilarity taken away

 

[Pooman]

Hold on, i just read that. 6 days, have they been eating and drinking? Is there food for them do they know what it is. 6 days seems very long to be taken for a forage and drink

 

[Teila]

Howdy Team

16 paws thank you but no thank you

No broody-hatch-alongs for Bambrook Bantams .. eggs! Someone has to lay an egg; no broodies getting fertile eggs, no hatch-alongs, no bubbies .. Eggs! Eggs! Eggs!

Lolz … are you thinking the great egg drought is messing with my sanity??

TG no, no, no, not “join you guys” join 16 paws and IC, no broodies, no hatch-alongs .. Eggs! Eggs! Eggs!

PM sorry to hear about your losses but your dog does not sound quite so sympathetic …. Any chance she has worked out how to change the temperature?

IC, welcome back .. re: “Hmm, so if Cilla does go straight to broody, are you going to give her eggs? “ see above! No, no, no … eggs!

Besides sharing my obvious minor break-down, I got nothing! Better get this work day started.

Have fun, take care and happy chickens

 

[MistyMountain]

Hi all! Not sure I can catch up with everyone, but know that I have read the posts and looked at the adorable baby pictures from my phone as I had the time. Whew, Weekend done. With the new space in the big coop, I planned on trying to integrate some of the teenagers for bed time. The whole flock mingles now, but just last night a couple pullets were cozy'd up to the grown ups when I went down to lock the coop. A few more were on the roost outside the big coop so I carried them in and found a spot for them. No one was injured this morning, so I assume it went well. They are learning fast that they need to respect their elders LOL.

I let MJ and her babies out today. A lot of back and forth in and out of the apartment, but I did catch them this afternoon taking a group dust bath in the run. Willie even came over and offered the babies a treat. A few caught some stray pecks from Chica, but it seems like they are learning to stay near mom. It will be up to them from now on to listen to mom, and mom to do what she needs to do to keep them safe. Pics to come later on.

I hope to have all of the pullets staying in the big coop by the end of the week and to remove the "apartment" tomorrow. Whew, much to do!

I hope everyone is well!!

 

[tommysgirl]

Hold on, i just read that. 6 days, have they been eating and drinking? Is there food for them do they know what it is. 6 days seems very long to be taken for a forage and drink

Ohhh Pooman sorry I seem to have got you worried for nothing. Here is the situation

On Monday these babies hatched in an incubator in the next county
The ate and drank a bunch
I picked them up on Friday
On Friday night I put them under the broody
She accepted them but as of late morning today she hadn't gotten up
They had begun to raise Cain in the coop
She eventually did get up
They have had access to food and water the whole time
So all is now well. Thanks for your concern!!!

Hi MM glad the party festivities and the the integration all ended well!!