I saw my chickens mating, now what?? SO CONFUSED!

[Animalfreak382]

OK, so my mom and I recently spotted my pair of Buff Brahma Bantams mating. We don't know if she will go broody, or what to do now. We also have another Buff, and got another egg today, candled it and NOTHING. I don't know which hen it came from. Will she lay an fertile egg and just leave it there? The previous owner told us she would be a good owner, but i don't know. Will she lay a nest of eggs and leave them? Can anyone help me out on what to expect? Thanks ~Animal

 

[chickengeorgeto]

OK, so my mom and I recently spotted my pair of Buff Brahma Bantams mating. We don't know if she will go broody, or what to do now. We also have another Buff, and got another egg today, candled it and NOTHING. I don't know which hen it came from. Will she lay an fertile egg and just leave it there? The previous owner told us she would be a good owner, but i don't know. Will she lay a nest of eggs and leave them? Can anyone help me out on what to expect? Thanks ~Animal

The only sure thing about chickens is that there is nothing sure about chickens. Chickens like all birds I am familiar with will lay a clutch of eggs before incubation begins. Only the last 14 to 18 eggs stand much of a chance of hatching. Because a hen may lay 40 or more eggs before she takes to her nest it is important that you gather the eggs you wish to incubate 3 to 5 times daily, mark, and properly store them.

 

[lazy gardener]

Relax. Fertile eggs are no different than infertile eggs when it comes to using them in the kitchen. You should continue to enjoy eating those eggs. If and when the eggs get a bit bigger, if and when one of your pullets goes broody, then you can give her some eggs to hatch. Leaving the eggs in the nest is not likely to induce her to become broody. If you really want chicks, wait until the eggs get bigger, then you could buy or borrow an incubator. But, I don't recommend that you get chicks through either method unless you have plenty of room to take care of them. In the mean time, you might want to read some of the excellent articles in the learning center about: hatching eggs, brooding chicks, broody hens.

 

[Animalfreak382]

Ok thanks! Will a non-broody hen still lay a clutch of eggs?

 

[lazy gardener]

A non broody hen will lay eggs almost every day, according to her genetic make up and her nutrition, day length, and hormone balance, as well as a lot of other factors that I know nothing about. A "clutch" of eggs IMO refers specifically to an accumulation of eggs in the nest, placed there by the bird in anticipation of sitting on them to hatch them. There is IMO no benefit of allowing eggs to accumulate in the nest, even if you do have a broody. If you have a broody, let her sit on golf balls, and then after you've collected a clutch of eggs (inside where they can be stored properly) you can swap them out for the golf balls. That way, they will all develop and hatch at the same rate, giving the most likely success for the broody hatch. Most of us collect eggs every day, and enjoy eating them.