INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[MikeTodd]

Ok, stupid question, how do you tell fertile eggs? Should I remove all the eggs from the coop one night, check them (once I know how) and return them so I know they have all been laid the same day?

 

[Finnie]

Ok, stupid question, how do you tell fertile eggs? Should I remove all the eggs from the coop one night, check them (once I know how) and return them so I know they have all been laid the same day?

Assuming you have a rooster and some of your eggs are bound to be fertile, and assuming you have been removing all eggs on a daily basis, I would collect in my kitchen those eggs that I want to hatch until I have the number of eggs I want. That's when I would mark them and place them under the broody hen. And count that as the first day.

If you have not been collecting all the eggs daily, then you have a bit of a problem to know which eggs she has been incubating, and when each one is due. I personally wouldn't want a staggered hatch, so I would take away all the eggs and pitch any that were already growing. Then only give her day one eggs all at once. That's kind of hard hearted on my part, but the alternative is to have chicks hatch at different times and cause the mother problems when some chicks need to leave the nest to find food while others did not hatch yet. One solution to that would be to take the earliest chicks away to a brooder as they hatch, so the mamma can stay on the other eggs. Then return all the chicks to mamma once they are all done hatchibg. (If she will accept them- or keep brooding them under heat yourself if not.)

 

[Finnie]

I should add, if you don't like pitching growing eggs, you could candle them and try to keep only the ones that look like they are developed about the same. It might seem less "mean" to only throw away the ones that are way way behind and barely growing. Mamma might not sit long enough for those stragglers to hatch anyway. Then you have half grown dead in shell chicks later.

 

[MikeTodd]

I think I will just take all the eggs one day. Mark some of them and put them under her. How many should I give her?

 

[hbrown322]

My hens are only a year old, but one of mine has been broody twice this season. I put her in a dog crate and stick her in the garage for 3 days. Then I put her on the opposite side of the yard during the day, garage at night for 3 days. Then next to the coop for 3 days (free range with the others)/garage at night. By the time I put her back she isn't broody anymore.
I've had to do all this because after separating her for a couple days to break the broodieness, she always beats up on the other hen upon moving back in.
Good luck!!

All right fellow BYCers, I am in need of some advice. I have an extremely broody buff Orpington and I have not been able to break her and I've tried all methods. My wife and I are at the point to where we are going to let her hatch out her eggs. Any advice is greatly appreciated as we have never hatched chicks either in the coop or in an incubator. We are not really sure what to do.

 

[Faraday40]

I think I will just take all the eggs one day. Mark some of them and put them under her. How many should I give her?

Look at her size when she's flattened out. Think of the surface area she covers as a dinner plate. (That's her "spread") She can fit as many eggs as you could fit on that plate without hanging out. You may not want to give her the max amount & that's fine too. I wouldn't give less than 3-4 just because you don't want to have one lonely only chick.

If you want to let her sit on something & stay broody for a couple days while you collect eggs, golf balls usually work. If you need fertile eggs, there are probably some people near you on this thread.

Fertile eggs: If you have a rooster, then as you eat your eggs, look for a "bull's eye" egg spot. If you regularly see that, then you know he's doing his job & you have fertile eggs.

Candling: After about a week of incubation, shine a small flashlight through the shell of the egg. (You may need to make an "o" with your fingers to block excess light.) The egg will glow & you can see what's inside. (Do this at dark for best viewing results.)

 

[MikeTodd]

Thanks a million! Soo...more questions. If I put golf balls under her, would that eventually break her broodiness? I have 3 that are broody but don't want that many chicks. And I have a great rooster who loves his girls so I am sure I have fertile eggs. I'll check tonight.

 

[kanina]

Anyone else getting all but carried off by mosquitoes? AARRRGH they are horrible here!

Far SS of Anderson here, they're out in force, I tell ya. We sprayed before we put our fence up a couple weekends ago, but with all this water we've had from the rain, its hardly helped. I go in nearly every night covered. DH is going to spray again this weekend, then maybe I can enjoy my new hammock.

 

[kanina]

I'm not sure if I should make myself a thread or what BUT... 'my' black Maran (14 1/2 wks old) has a broken beak. My husband noticed it a few weeks ago and it was raw. Not bloody or nasty, it was scabbed. She's one of my grandma's pullets we're raising until she gets her permit passed (lives in St. Joseph County), but I'm caring for them like my own. The top half of her beak (near her nose) is hardened, looking "normal", and it seems to be growing out. Will it?

She isn't noticeably malnourished and I've watched her eat and drink just fine. I'm not sure if there is anything I can do, or should do. I've kept their coop extra clean so she doesn't shove her face in anything nasty.

I also don't know the cause. She's in a coop with three other pullets, 14 1/2 wks and 16 wks. Its a TSC hardware cloth easy to assemble coop, so I'm not sure where she hurt herself, and this is the coop we're planning to use for the youngsters.

I'll try to grab some pictures tonight when I get home from work.

 

[Faraday40]

Thanks a million! Soo...more questions. If I put golf balls under her, would that eventually break her broodiness? I have 3 that are broody but don't want that many chicks. And I have a great rooster who loves his girls so I am sure I have fertile eggs. I'll check tonight.

A broody usually treats golf balls as eggs. I use them to keep a hen broody until I'm ready to start real eggs. (I feel guilty about tossing developing eggs.)

If you want to stop a broody hen, you must do something to cool her off. Like put her in a wire cage without bedding. That allows airflow to cool her underside.