Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[kilby]

The new first time Mama. She has one more egg under her, but I don't think it is going to hatch. Broody Hen #2 hatched out 2 babies, but I can't get pics yet.


I had a third hen go broody, and I only have two nest boxes. I had to lock her and the other girls out because it was near hatch day. So broody number three found her own private nesting spot.

It's also funny how chickens go broody almost all at once. I have found my hens laying in strange places too. Like on the coop floor when there is a nest box there.

 

[kilby]

The new first time Mama. She has one more egg under her, but I don't think it is going to hatch. Broody Hen #2 hatched out 2 babies, but I can't get pics yet.


I had a third hen go broody, and I only have two nest boxes. I had to lock her and the other girls out because it was near hatch day. So broody number three found her own private nesting spot.

Is that a feed bin That is hilarious

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

Beautiful hen and chick!  love the comfy safe  spot the other hen settled on!

Thanks! I will have to move this hen after the other girls have taken their babies out of the coop. The chicks are from Dheltzels Bantam Cochins.

Is that a feed bin   That is hilarious 

It's a trash can filled with pine shavings. Last night we had bad thunderstorms. So at 1:30 am, I jumped out of bed, put a robe on, and closed her lid on the trash can (leaving a gap for air flow). Haha, what we do for our chickens!

*trash can, not rash can, lol

 

[SpoilMyPooch]

In terms of looking after broody hens and the eggs in very hot temperatures, don't worry too much about the eggs. Focus on the needs of the hen and then she is in a better position to take care of her eggs. It sounds like a great idea to move her into the house if this option is available to you, but for many people it won't be.

So you need to make sure that the space that the broody and her eggs are in is shaded and well ventilated- so that there can be a through draft. If you have power out near the broody you might consider placing a fan close by but not so close that its unfamiliarity will scare your hen.

The availability of water is of crucial importance. You might try adding ice cubes or bigger chunks of ice into it to keep the temperature of it cold or cool.

Your broody will probably spend more time off the eggs- but don't fret about this. Remember, the broody hen sits on eggs to keep them warm. In higher temperatures, she doesn't need to sit on them as often...

Very hot weather will mean that you need to be checking on your broody more often than in other circumstances. Broody hens are very vulnerable creatures because their over-riding instinct and priority is the eggs, sometimes above their own needs. Carefully check that the hen is drinking throughout the day and that she is not showing any signs of real distress.

 

[SpoilMyPooch]

Yes, if there are no signs from your hens that they are broody, don't place fertile eggs under them because in all likelihood the eggs won't hatch. Hens need to start showing signs of broodiness before you place fertile eggs under them.

Here are some excerpts from a guide that I have written.

3. How do I know if my hen is broody?
Typically the hen will spend more time in the nest box than she does normally. Ordinarily hens will spend only a few minutes in the nest box- just enough time to make the nest comfortable, lay an egg and then think about what she has done for a few minutes.
Broody hens spend more extended time on the nest (it will vary depending on the individual hen and the stage of broodiness that she is at.)
Broody hens will return to the nest if they are shooed away and they can also be aggressive if you approach them in the nest box.
The sounds that they make are also different when they are broody. These sounds are like “hisses” and “growls” (Gail Damerow.) Also, a broody hen will eat less than they would do normally-when they are at their most broody their food intake can be 20% of what it should be. Consequently, hens that have been broody for over a week might show a significant loss of weight.
4. What are the different stages of broodiness?
Broodiness is a cycle that grows and strengthens. Every time that a hen lays an egg, it experiences a hormonal surge that recedes once the egg is laid. It seems that this hormonal surge does not recede for a hen that is going broody. Broodiness builds in a hen over a few days or a week. Although in the first few days of the broody cycle, a hen will be on and off her nest several times, as the cycle builds, the hen will spend more and more time on the eggs and in the nest until she will only leave the nest for very short periods to get food and water.
34. Can broodiness be induced?
As already discussed some breeds of chickens will never go broody and so nothing will induce broodiness in them. However, for breeds and individual hens that will possibly brood, there are a few tricks that you can try out in order to get the Broody juices running!
Kimberly Willis and Robert Ludlow believe that two of the biggest influences on broodiness are natural- long and warm days in the Spring and Summer. Light can be manipulated to create the effect of longer days and a coop can be warmed up in an effort to induce broodiness. However, to try and recreate a summer’s day in the depth of winter is not advisable!
Other tactics are to use golf balls or fake eggs to try and induce it. The presence of other broody hens might encourage a hen to go broody but there is little evidence to suggest that having a cockerel helps.
Young hens who are starting their first or second broody cycle will be more likely to have shortened cycles. A mature hen should have a broody cycle of 21 days but a young hen might not last that long. It is a maturity issue. Of course other factors such as the breed of chicken and its individual personality also play a part...
Good luck.

 

[Johnn]

Bella and baby

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

Bella and baby

I love this picture! So cute with them both muddy!

 

[Johnn]

I love this picture! So cute with them both muddy!

Thank you

 

[SpoilMyPooch]

My 1st batch of hens are 14 months old. 1 went broody and sat on 9 eggs, not all her own. my girls lay in a community box. Their choice not mine. So after about what I thought 20 days I checked and there was a little black ball of fluff. I moved her on her nest into my original small coop because my husband found a dead chick outside of the run. We have 3 chicks from 9 eggs she abandoned the remaining eggs and they were cold so we disposed of them. She is doing great. My question is when will she start laying again? and I have another coop with 3 month old pullets, do I put her and babies with them or the adults? Thanks sooo much.

bbuubbles,

In terms of when your hen will start laying again, the average seems to be 6 weeks. But that is an average and it will depend on a few factors- how quickly the chicks are developing will be one. I would put the hen and chicks back in with the adults. Best of luck.

 

[SpoilMyPooch]

Can anyone help me with my broody hen. I'm not sure on her breed. She is just one of our egg layers. A pretty black chook and we stuck some bantam eggs under her. The chicks are now 9 weeks old and she shows no sign of weaning them and we want to put the bantam chicks with the other bantams to integrate them with the flock and the mother back with her flock and back to egg laying. Should we force this or leave it. I'm worried she will decide to wean them and they will die (it's mid winter in Australia at the moment).
She's a crazy brooding chook. She sat on the nest for almost 2 months before we gave her some fertile eggs. And last time we had a rooster she flew the coop and hatched 4 babies in the bushland somewhere and came back when they were chicks (we live on 40 acres).

What did you do? Did you force wean?