How do you know if a broody gave up on the eggs

[Tmaxson01]

I had a hen go broody last Wednesday. I let her stay in the regular nest overnight and moved her the next night into a beautiful new maternity ward

. I put the 7 eggs she orginally was sitting on in the nest. She wouldn't go sit on the eggs immediatly and when I checked on her before I went to bed she was sitting beside them but not on them, however when I checked on her in the morning she had moved them into the back corner and was sitting on them. I don't have any idea how long it took her to sit back on them and it was in the 40s that night. She is still in the brooder and does sit on the eggs occasionally but I often see her outside in the pen area of the brooder (way more often than the broody I had last year that hatched 5 eggs for me) plus there was an eighth egg layed at some point that I noticed yesterday. So right now I'm just letting her stay there until I get a clear sign that she has given up but how do I know if this is a waste of time and she has really given up or do I keep letting it go and see what happens around the last week in May?

 

[bobbieschicks]

I have two that are broody now. The 1st one wouldn't accept my moving her until I did it at night. After that she clamped down on her eggs and is staying put most of the day. The 2nd one just went broody about a week ago. She was moved at night as well because daytime moves for her this time didn't work. She's clamped down tight too.

I like to see them on the nest for at least two nights before calling them broody - and make sure they aren't laying anymore. If she's still laying then she's still gathering her clutch and she might not sit tight on them until she's done. A broody can get off her eggs for awhile and they can get cold and still hatch.

I would leave her in the area she's in and candle her eggs to see if there is growth. Depending on the date, you should be able to tell if anything is happening. By Day 5 you should see veins and a dark area formed. By Day 8 you should see a bigger dark area and by Day 14 you should see mostly dark with veins inside. I would toss any absolutely clears, cracked or stinkers and then just let her sit on the rest until Day 25. Then I'd candle those and decide whether to get her some day old chicks or let her try another go at hatching fertile eggs.

Hope it works out for you!

I had a hen go broody last Wednesday. I let her stay in the regular nest overnight and moved her the next night into a beautiful new maternity ward

. I put the 7 eggs she orginally was sitting on in the nest. She wouldn't go sit on the eggs immediatly and when I checked on her before I went to bed she was sitting beside them but not on them, however when I checked on her in the morning she had moved them into the back corner and was sitting on them. I don't have any idea how long it took her to sit back on them and it was in the 40s that night. She is still in the brooder and does sit on the eggs occasionally but I often see her outside in the pen area of the brooder (way more often than the broody I had last year that hatched 5 eggs for me) plus there was an eighth egg layed at some point that I noticed yesterday. So right now I'm just letting her stay there until I get a clear sign that she has given up but how do I know if this is a waste of time and she has really given up or do I keep letting it go and see what happens around the last week in May?

 

[Tmaxson01]

So I get home from work and now there are only 6 eggs out of 8 still in the nest. I noticed that at least one shell is crushed on the ground in the pen area and the others are no where to be found. Then I go out after dinner and now there are only 5. The brooder and pen are pretty well protected so I don't think anything got in there, I just think she did something with them, maybe ate them. But now she's back to sitting on the remaining 5. This is for sure a very weird brooding. I may just let her go back in with the others and if she sits again we'll try it again.