Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[Johnn]

stony mine haven't ever had a problem with it either, but i have seen others post about it. I think because ours run free they have more opportunities since they can get away from each other. When my young roo goes to roost of an evening is when the head roo gives him a hard time, he never jumps him but will jump at him, and scares this lil bantam, it's like a game with head roo.

To be honest my cockerels get on ALOT better than the hens!, Some of my hens have a huge hate for each other!

 

[Miss Lydia]

What a great thread! I'm glad so many people are going with nature's original egg hatching method.

Maybe this was asked before but search hasn't turn up anything. I don't know whether my eggs are still alive.

We've had our flock about 3 months. I bought them from a friend at work who wanted out of the "backyard chicken thing." About a month ago I put golf balls in the nest boxes (3 boxes for 9 hens and a few pullets), which triggered a broody hen so I decided to give her eggs to sit on. There are several roosters so we have no shortage of fertile eggs. And we are raising them for meat as well as eggs so we want to have a self-populating flock. (This same flock hatched a brood last summer in a brush pile at their former home--nobody knew it was going on until 20 fuzzy little chicks came out. So clearly at least one hen has the necessary instincts.)

I put 7 eggs under "Broody" on December 18. According to the perfect 21 day conditions that means they should have hatched on Jan 8. Since broody hens aren't a perfect incubator I estimated they'd probably hatch anytime this week. I work during the day and collect eggs in the evening, and on the evening of Jan 2 Broody was no longer on the eggs and they were cool. For all I know, maybe nobody sat on them all day. In mild panic I grabbed the nearest hen and put her on the eggs and she seemed to settle in there for the night. The next day I had to do the same thing. DH and I wondered if we should throw out the eggs since Broody had abandoned them for two days. We hadn't made up our minds and on the next evening, there was a new hen sitting on them, happy as a clam. "Broody 2" and has been sitting on it every day. We decided that since this is a new experiment for us, to let her brood and see what happens.

Additionally, there are now 25-30 eggs. I allowed the other hens to lay into the brood if they felt like it because I know that last year's chicks had to be laid over several days (there were only 3 laying hens last summer) so nature doesn't seem to mind if they're a little different in age.

Do you think the embryos died when "Broody 1" abandoned them? Or do you think growth was just slowed down? I'm starting to think they're dead. I am hesitant to candle them because the hen doesn't like me messing about and from what I've read you're supposed to leave eggs alone in the last several days.

The only way your going to know is to candle, go in after dark and take out one egg at a time, if theres 25-30 eggs then I'd at least candle more than 1 . If your afraid of your hen then wear gloves, but it would be a shame to toss out the eggs when they could just have slowed down when first broody got off. Let us know what you see, I'd probably candle 5-6 eggs under her.

 

[stonykill]

stony mine haven't ever had a problem with it either, but i have seen others post about it. I think because ours run free they have more opportunities since they can get away from each other. When my young roo goes to roost of an evening is when the head roo gives him a hard time, he never jumps him but will jump at him, and scares this lil bantam, it's like a game with head roo.

one of my "old girls" does that every night

to all of the less than 1 year olds. Even the roosters.


the "old girls"

 

[Miss Lydia]

one of my "old girls" does that every night

to all of the less than 1 year olds. Even the roosters.


the "old girls"

Just letting them know who's boss. Pretty girls.

 

[pysankigirl]

my broody:




LOL...she's in the basement.

 

[pmcatnip]

Ok thanks, I will do that.

Update: I candled about 6 eggs, some had nothing going on, some I couldn't tell, and some had definite development. I think tomorrow I'll candle them all and mark the air spaces/etc. Then candle again in a few days to see if anything changed. And maybe move the nest & hen into private quarters.

 

[CoopChick719]

Well here we go! I set 6 eggs under my broody Sizzle who has been sitting on an empty nest for 14 days. Got them from a friend who said they could be EE's, Barred Rocks or Plymouth Rocks--the roo is a Barred Rock Cross--I just don't know what he's crossed with. This will be her 2nd hatch but my 1st! The woman I got her from said she was a good momma so I'll let her run with this. There was no moving her off the original nest so I'll be building a pen around her in the main coop. If all goes well, we should have chicks Feb. 1st.

 

[farmer boy]

day 7 winter hatch everything seems fine only 3 eggs and idk what they are crossed with last time she hatched eggs i thought they would be my alpha roos chicks but he only had one but there was a ee to o who knows what will be in this batch two bantams and one standard the brown standard egg seems a little small so i think it could be my barred rock mardy she lays smaller brown eggs or my australorps but they just started laying and there is no roo mating with them that i know of

 

[Miss Lydia]

my broody:




LOL...she's in the basement.

Good move she looks very content.

 

[Miss Lydia]

day 7 winter hatch everything seems fine only 3 eggs and idk what they are crossed with last time she hatched eggs i thought they would be my alpha roos chicks but he only had one but there was a ee to o who knows what will be in this batch two bantams and one standard the brown standard egg seems a little small so i think it could be my barred rock mardy she lays smaller brown eggs or my australorps but they just started laying and there is no roo mating with them that i know of

It will be a surprise.

don't ya love surprises