It must be that Broody time of the year cuz I need answers too.

[alaskachick]

Please forgive me for not taking the time to research my questions first. I know you BYC old timers must get tired of answering the same questions, but I just don't have the time this week and I need to know some chicken things regarding going broody. My chickens are one year old now. They have been laying since last September. I only have 12 hens and 1 roo, however I get an average of 10 eggs per day so I think they are doing a good job. Yesterday I found one of my Light Brahmas sitting on eggs which I will count as day one of the needed 22 days. I decided to make her-her own pen because she is brooding in the my other hens favorite box and they are going in the box and basically laying eggs on top of her and then she scoops them up and sits on them. I picked her up today and she had 9 eggs under her. I thought if I moved her to a private box the other chickens wouldn't be able to lay on her and then I wouldn't loose those eggs too. Well after I moved her, she took of running and I lost track of her cuz I have 6 sister Light Brahams and I cant tell them apart so I did not know which one to lay on the moved eggs. I basically blew that attempt. An hour later I came back to the coop and there she was again in the box with 4 new eggs under her. I want her to do her maternal thing, however I am not sure how too feed her and water her while she is in the nest.

Do the hens eat and drink during broody time?
Should I put some food in the nest?
Will hens sacrifice their own health to care for those eggs?
Are the eggs that she was sitting on for 24 hours edible?
If for some reason the eggs do not hatch in 22 days, will she still be broody until she has a sucessful hatch?
Should I expect her 5 sisters to all go broody in the next few days too. OMG!

 

[stormylady]

Hi there, well Im in the same boat with ya, infact your post was almost word for word like mine. LOL I don't know alot about this subject but I will tell you a little bit of what I do know.
First off my young hens, "practiced going broody" they would sit a couple of days here, maybe a week there but never really followed through with it.
Do the hens eat and drink during broody time? Yes they do.
Should I put some food in the nest?
I would it seems to encourage them to eat more regularly, they will get off the nest to Poo though maybe a couple of times a day sometimes less often.
Will hens sacrifice their own health to care for those eggs?
Yes I've read many post of hens loosing a sever amount of weight while sitting on a nest of eggs.
Are the eggs that she was sitting on for 24 hours edible?
not sure about that one but I personally wouldn't eat them.
If for some reason the eggs do not hatch in 22 days, will she still be broody until she has a sucessful hatch?
Thats where I'm at right now.
Should I expect her 5 sisters to all go broody in the next few days too. OMG!
I would not think that all will go broody but then again "Tis the Season" ya know. but my quess is no they won't .

 

[Alexander]

Well yes of course hens eat and drink during these 21 days.How could they survive?

If you want put some feed and water next to her but if you have your chickens free range then let her do her thing.She will go out and in 5-10 minutes she will return.

I also have another piece of information for you.NEVER kill a broody hen for meat.Her meat is really bad,not tasty and smelly.I dont know why,probably because she doesnt eat as much as she used to.

And last but not least,I would not suggest you eat the egg after 24 hours because the embryo might have started if the eggs are fertilized.

 

[Mrs. K]

if you cannot create some new nest, for your layers, or block of this nest for your broody hen, then the best thing is to move her. Try doing it at night, try a dog crate that you can lock up and see if she settles on this new nest.

I have moved a broody hen once, and lost the clutch. ugh! I leave mine where she is, and count the eggs every few days. However, she is mean, and my layers tiptoe by her, and lay as far away as they can from her.

MrsK