My first every farm fresh egg laid today soo excited but now what??

[chickery-do]

What is broody? I have always wanted to start a little family farm, but I was raised in an area where it wasn't allowed. The most you could have there was a dog, and on a leash or else, lol!! I am so excited to be starting our family farm, and besides dog peanut which I've had 7 years now, I am starting our farm with the chickens we purchased not to long ago!! and we know nothing absolutely nothing!! This is all new we just got married a year ago June 10Th and purchased our home last October, and chickens came in march and so did our daughter!! So everything is new to us, Marriage, Home, Family, and we are learning and enjoying so much of it!! I know I probably sound stupid, but I believe asking questions is my best bet to success and whats a better way to find out, everyone starts somewhere and doing it right and asking for advice from a more experienced person is always key!!!

I jealous of your youth! I love reading post like yours just starting a family and a farm life w/

there to help you along the way! It's like home schooling for chickens (pun intended!) lol Enjoy life, and take a bite out of that egg, raise chicken a little later!

 

[liz9910]

Welcome to BYC!

 

[gryeyes]

Welcome to BYC from California wine country in the Western Sierra Foothills!

Many - the majority - of hens do not go broody at all. However, that doesn't mean none of yours will. You just have to wait for one. Some folks have NEVER had a broody hen.

The way to tell is if the hen stays on the nest all day and all night, day after day, with only a short break once or twice a day to drink, eat, poop, and maybe get a little dust bath. She doesn't roost, just stays on the nest. She will flatten herself over the eggs and make seriously growly, scary warnings if you check on her, and may even peck at you when you reach to get the eggs out from under her (if you want to gather and eat the eggs instead of letting them hatch).

Every egg I eat (other than hard-boiled in the shell) I check for fertility just out of habit. There is a white spot on every egg yolk; on fertilized eggs, that white spot turns into a white circle "bulls-eye."

Enjoy your flock for now, eat those eggs, study up on BYC so you're ready to support any hen which may go broody for you.

 

[jessicalanham]

so that explains why they aren't sitting, lol. I now have 7 eggs have only viewed them sitting on them one time, yet they seem to lay in the same cubby every time. I was doing some reading on here and if I'm understanding this correctly my eggs wont hatch if they are not set on, so I need to buy an incubator. What is the best incubator to get? or is there a way to make one?