My first broody!** Daily Updates* Post Hatch Events

[gryeyes]

Day Five

Buffy let me reach under her to count her clutch of eggs last night: still 3 eggs and a golf ball.

I moved the feed and water closer to her, although I see the levels of both have diminished. Minerva still keeps her company at night.

This morning, I was almost late for work, so I didn't check on Her Broodiness before I left, just opened up the A-Frame so Minerva could escape, and opened up the doors to the Duck House and Middle's coop for everybody. I'm also now letting everybody free range in the back yard when I'm at work (uh huh... I am!) because my land-lady is taking some days off to do yard work around the whole property (minus my back yard).

I must share this: my boss is the best in the world!! I requested Monday, June 28th off, because that's the day AFTER the eggs should hatch. And she granted it!!

 

[Mrs. Fluffy Puffy]

Quote:
That was nice of her!

 

[Happy Chooks]

We know you're gonna have your butt parked outside the coop waiting! And doing this

 

[nursemeh]

grey eyes,
great pictures and I can tell you are eggcited, just as I was about 2 1/2 months ago when we experienced our very first broody!

I hope this sint considered rude, but if you want some cute pics to inspire you here is a link to my "first ever broody" thread from awhile back:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=341164&p=1

I know when I was making the decision to let her hatch chicks I read every thread I could find on the topic!

Of course, since they hatched I haven't spent as much time on BYC(sniff, sniff) but its because those little cuties are just so adorable!!

We've always let our adults free range on our yard, but I simply have to be out there to watch over those cuties- so I spend a lot of time outside (letting laundry pile up inside) watching them hunt, peck and scratch around- they are just so fun! they are almost 5 weeks old now-feathery,fluffballs!

I hope you have agreat time with your broody hen and please update with pictures! It is a completley different experience from bringing home chicks from the feed store- momma hen does all the work and you just have all the fun watching them!

Mary

 

[gryeyes]

Day Six

Buffy is less nasty about me checking on her clutch. She still puffs up and chitters at me, but she only pecks AT my hand, now. Last night, I noticed she must have been moving the eggs around underneath her, because now the golf ball is closer to the front of the nest box, when it was previously deeper beneath her. Oddly, I only felt TWO eggs and the golf ball, now.

Hmmmm.

This morning, two eggs and the golf ball. Wonder where the third egg went?? Maybe I wasn't reaching back far enough under her?

There were three eggs in the nest box *next* to her. (And one in another coop nest box.) I gathered those.

Later, fully intending to mark the eggs as suggested, I found a pen that wrote really well on the palm of my hand, and went out to check on Buffy and her clutch. Wow. There was a very warm white egg sitting on the shavings just outside of the box in front of her. What's up with that?

I panicked and placed it under her. Well, maybe not PANICKED, but I totally forgot about marking any eggs, even with the pen in my other hand. I also tried to reach deep under her and yes, there appeared to be three eggs and a golf ball.

So, now I've pushed a fourth egg under her like a doofus, none of them marked, but I didn't want to bother her any more by taking it back or removing eggs just long enough to make a pen mark on them. Apologizing, I patted her - despite her chittering at me about the indignity of it all - and left her alone.

Before I check on her again this evening, does anybody have any suggestions for me??

I remember the original two eggs - which I SAW the second day - were one of hers and one of Rebecca's. (Rebecca lays the light green ones.) Rebecca is continuing to lay in the nest next to Buffy's nest. The white egg belongs to one of the Lakenvelder girls, Minerva or Millicent. Probably Minerva, who USED to use the nest box Buffy has appropriated, and whom is continuing to keep Buffy company at night in the A-Frame coop.

I really don't think the other pullets could "sneak" an egg under her. And since I don't gather eggs until the evening when I get home from work (on weekdays), there's plenty of opportunity for Buffy to pull more eggs under her, if that's something she might do. That's not happening.

Not yet, anyway. Is a clutch of two or three eggs sufficient to let a broody hen work on hatching? Is that normal? I thought about moving the golf ball, but maybe she's really attached to it.... *throwing up hands*

 

[kano]

The thing I would do: Get a clutch of new eggs and place them under her. And, please not 3. Why not 8 or 10? If she has one today, another tomorrow and so, the final result is not going to end good. And try to isolate her. (sorry for my english)

 

[gryeyes]

Quote:
Those 3 eggs are the original 3 eggs she started to brood on Sunday. Any eggs I added now would begin incubating nearly a week later than those first 3.

She is already isolated, for the most part. Well, about 4 other hens go up there to lay in the nest box next to her, but they all (except for one hen) sleep in an entirely different coop.

Should I add some eggs I've already gathered (currently in the fridge) or tomorrow's gather of four to six eggs to this small clutch (marking the week "younger" set)?

 

[Happy Chooks]

I'd either let her sit on the original 3 eggs or remove all those eggs (toss them) and set new eggs all at the same time. And I'd take out the golf ball (so she doesn't keep trying to hatch it when the babies come) and mark all the eggs.

 

[gryeyes]

Day Seven

Well, she's still at it. I guess she means it. One third of the way through....

I removed the golf ball this morning, and put it in another coop's nest box, to encourage the Middles to consider laying eggs there when they get ready to do so.

Still only 3 eggs under Buffy. Minerva did NOT sleep with her last night, but moved in with the Middles in their coop. I wonder if she and Buffy had words???

I haven't found ANY eggs from Bernadette since Buffy started this broody business. There's a good chance Bernadette has just found a perfect spot in the back yard, somewhere, that I haven't located yet. But Bernadette is not sitting on them, so I better find it darned soon, if there is such a clutch!

This morning there was a near disaster in the duck's pool (a 300 gallon stock tank). Minerva apparently slipped on the edge, getting a drink of water there, and fell in. She was unable to get out, and I discovered her cold, floating body. The entire tale - with a MIRACULOUS good ending - is over at: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=358207

So, due to my chicken saving efforts, I didn't do much more than take Buffy's golf ball away. No checking to count the eggs in the nest with her. I'll do that later this afternoon. I'm still feeling out of sorts and kinda don't want to mess with anything that's going well, right now, if that makes any sense.

I've pretty much decided to go ahead with the original 3 eggs, as this IS an experiment, anyway. If they don't hatch, then that's only 3 eggs lost. Oh, and last night I did mark those eggs.

Day Seven Afternoon Update
Buffy was out and about, but still chittering and fluffing at anybody approaching her. I took the opportunity to go check on her eggs, and found Greta in the nest box next to Buffy's. There were only TWO eggs in Buffy's nest! So I checked under Greta, and there was Buffy's third egg.

I put it back under Greta, who was not acting broody, just sitting on a stolen egg. Huh.

A bit later, I checked again when I saw Greta out and about in the yard. Buffy was back in/on her nest, but the stolen (marked) egg was still over in the other nest box. I put it under Buffy, chiding her for not taking it back herself.

I'm still amazed that chickens CAN move eggs around like that!

 

[gryeyes]

Day Eight

Oh, LORDY it's hot today! The other day I removed the plexiglas window covering on one shady side of the A-Frame coop so there would be MORE space for hot air to escape. There is ventilation all along the spine of the A-Frame; just wanted some extra. Today I took the plexiglas out of the window on the other/sunny side of the coop. These windows are at the far end of the coop, not up by the two nest boxes.

You can see the "sunny side" window in this photo.

Minerva, not demonstrating ANY ill effects of her near-drowning experience, spent the night in the A-Frame with Buffy again.

Buffy has not changed her mind about these eggs, yet. When I said hello to her this morning, Rebecca was in the nest box next to her, facing inwards. With her tail facing out. Maybe Rebecca just didn't want hear anything about the subject. One of Rebecca's light green eggs is under Buffy (because she used to lay her eggs in the nest box Buffy has appropriated), so maybe she's ticked off she has to lay her eggs in the OTHER nest box.

I built the A-Frame with the "egg check" door at one end, following some plans I found somewhere on the 'Net (not on BYC). However, the double nest box unit I bought actually BACKS UP to that door. What a dork. So I have to lift the side hatch for that part of the A-Frame to gather eggs and/or check on Buffy.

I am wondering why Bernadette has not been leaving me any eggs since Buffy went broody. PLEASE let it be that she's just taking a hot weather break or something, and NOT that she's found a super-secret place to lay eggs! I used to gather at least six eggs a day, now it's consistently four. Sometimes I'd get seven and I've even gotten 8 eggs twice since all eight started laying. So SOMEBODY other than Buffy is holding out. Yet she's the only broody girl.

Not that I really care all that much - eggs are just a bonus for having chickens. I just do not want to discover a clutch of rotten eggs in the yard somewhere!