How many eggs under a LF Brahma hen?

[rizq]

How many Hamburg (medium sized egg) can my Brahma hen sit? I am going to give her eggs in a couple days (she went broody day before yesterday and seems to be serious) and am unsure how many she can reasonably cover.

 

[aupoet]

Hi riz, So this is your first time doing a hatching with a broody hen, I wish you and her the best of luck. How many eggs you can put under a hen depends on the size of the hen and the size of the eggs. With a Brahma, which tend to be a large heavy breed, and using medium eggs, I would say you could use about 18 eggs or so. See that the hen can cover them all and that they all feel good and warm after she has been on them for several hours. If any of the outer eggs feel cool or are not covered remove them. If it's only been a few hours they will still be good to eat. Be sure to mark each egg with a pencil mark on one side so you can see that they are being turned over everyday. I have hatched out chicks using a hen many times over the years and have found Brahmas to make good mothers. If you need some more info check out my article on ehow at: http://www.ehow.com/how_4599194_out-chicken-eggs-setting-hen.html and leave a comment if you like it.
Thank You

 

[rizq]

Thanks

She is actually my second broody (chicken) that I am actually allowing to hatch eggs. I de-broodied my seramas and EE bantams, but currently have a BO on day 13 or so (sitting on 13 eggs). The brahma is a bigger hen however (obviously) and want to make sure she is sitting on as many as she can handle without overdoing it