Is My hen broody?

[Hopefully]

I know they might not be fertile but just last week my other hen hatched her eggs. Do you think maybe 1 or 2 could be fertile?

 

[austinhart123]

Quote:
I have my dog leashed next to the can. She doesn't seem to mind, also, since my dog doesn't even know she's in there. She hasn't left the trashcan all day today.. will she ever leave or do I need to toss in some feed? Water might be an issue.. putting a bowl of water in there is enough time for her to attack me..but I can toss in some feed without getting close.

And if she does leave... would she be too scared to come back with the dog there?
Maybe I should move the can one more time..
I just finished tying up my dog (extra knotted and secure) and I don't feel like doing it again. I'll risk getting attacked to move the can..

Just scared as how I should do that.

she will go for food and water herself usually early in the morning, i would move the can back to where it was before cuase if you moved it, when she goes to get food shes gunna return to where it used to be and freak out when she discovers her nest is gone, maybe you have an umbrelly with a clamp that you can put over the trashcan if shelter is the issue, and your gunna have to untie your dog anyway when you walk him and play with him or when you bring him into sleep anyways so whats untieing him again anyways?

 

[rhoda_bruce]

Quote:
Do you have a candler? And what color eggs are we talking about. If its light brown it will be easy to see the spider veins in just a few days. You don't have to do anything now. I once used a hen for 3 batches of eggs, although my mom fussed me and told me I was wrong. If you were having her on duck eggs, it would take 28 days anyway and she would be fine. Just give it a few days and go at night and swipe about 4 or 5 from her, go in the dark and candle with a strong light. If you only see a yolk and no veins, I would consider other possibilities. Certainly there must be a farm in your area that has birds you admire.
Or maybe you will see diffinete signs of life. Can anyone say anything about when a hen can be considered to be infertile. I would guess about 10 days.......anyone????
But if your other hen just hatched a few eggs, keep in mind that those eggs were laid over 3 weeks ago and you may have had a rooster with her in that time.

 

[austinhart123]

Quote:
the eggs that hatched a week ago were lad over a month ago, so they have a better chance than these do

 

[Hopefully]

Hm yeah good points made.
I tossed some food into the can, my hen got up and ate it hungrily before settling back down. Would she actually be so dumb as to forget where her nest was? That wouldn't be good.. I'm sure she won't forget. If she does, I'll be up early anyway to remind her.
Yeah, you're right too. My other hen did lay a month ago but my rooster had already been gone for 2 weeks. Then again, maybe these eggs are infertile. They are brown and white. Today is the 3rd day. So basically... get them in the dark, use a flashlight.. try to spot veins? All on the 3rd day?

If these don't hatch, I'll get some chicks from Tractor&Supply in March. They put chicks out every spring. Would she still be broody by then? If so, I'll grab her a chick or 2 to take care of, because I hate to see her so determined right now for maybe nothing.
I'm hoping at least 1 out of 9 will be fertile..

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I would candle after about 6 or 7 days. She will not still be broody in March. She will be broody, until you stop her from brooding or until she hatches. Look up instructions for candling. You can probably find a good pic of a homemade candler. They can be made easy with a strong light and a cardboard box, provided no light seeps through the cardboard. I never spend a penny on a candler. I put many together with scraps around the house.
Also, its hard to convince a hen that chicks are hers. You have to swipe out eggs for chicks at night and it has to be very young chicks. And I would think you have to wait until she has brooded a while.

 

[PortageGirl]

LEAVE the can THERE now. Quit shuffling it and quit worrying quite so much!

She'll be ok. If she's usually ok with the dog, and the dog doesn't chase her, let it be. Broody instinct is very strong and from what you describe,she's very broody.

Put some food and water near the can and she'll get it herself in the morning.

Hmmmm,,, you say the rooster was gone around the first of September? that's.... 6 weeks? wellll..... I don't think the eggs COULD be fertile... the limit is usually 4 weeks at the outside. I'm sorry I didn't catch that sooner. If you could find someone who has fertile eggs, you could replace hers with them if you wanted to... otherwise, she's wasting her time and energy. Sorry! I didn't read the first few posts well enough I guess.

 

[Hopefully]

I'm pretty sure the eggs are not fertile.. but hopefully maybe 1 is. Lucy, my hen, was off about ten minutes today. I was thinking maybe I should take the eggs and she'll forget.. but as soon as I went to pick one up, it was so warm and I couldn't help thinking what if there's a forming chick in there? So I left it alone and my hen went back to sit on them. She's calmer with me there now because she knows that my coming=food without having to get up (I throw food in there for her)

Would she really sit on infertile eggs all 3 weeks? I mean, wouldn't they rot?

Oh, I hope God gives her 1 chick for the hard work she's doing now, my poor determined hen. I know how it feels to want something and not get it... hoping ONE is fertile.

 

[PortageGirl]

I can understand, but for her sake, why not try to find a few fertile eggs and ADD them to her pile. That way, if she hatches the new eggs, she'll be satisfied and if any of hers are fertile, those will hatch too. The time will work out so HERS would hatch first, but she'll still be there for the new ones if you can get any fertile ones under her pretty quick.

 

[RioLindoAz]

Quote:
It is possible that the eggs are infertile. Do you have a rooster? If you do, they're fertile.
It is possible that her instinct kicked in when she saw your other broody. Its happened to my hens many times, and I'm sure thats why there are many clutches that are hatched by multiple hens.
You can move her, but I wouldn't. Move the bin to a safer location if necesary and sprinke some scratch around her bedding. That usually entices them to feed, and provides them with the fat they need to keep the eggs warm.

Have fun, and good luck!