Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[Catandherchicks]

Are you keeping the door on this dog crate open all the time? Or you let her out? Lets do this----lets go back about 5000 years, before you and I there was a chicken setting on some eggs, and she survived without our help---LOL. I set 67 broodies just last year---only thing I did was move them to a hatching pen----had food and water(not close to her nest) and a place for her to stretch her legs and dust bath. I Never try to coach her off her nest, never hand feed her in her nest----she knows what she is doing----I never look under them, but I do look at their eggs if I see them off the nest. Everyone of them hatched their eggs without my help. Good Luck!

Thanks, PD-Riverman. I know you're right. I don't think I was this concerned with my own kid. Oh, wait. Yes I was. And yes, the door to the crate is propped open. So, I guess I'll forego the trip to the outside and just leave her by herself in the crate in the garage. I'll make the outer area larger and put a dust bath in there. I'm feeling better already.

 

[nchls school]

A broody hen is removed from the daily activities of the coop and the roosting jostling and routine...therefore her position in the pecking order is comprised. The harassing you see from the other flock members is because of this...hens like things orderly, a broody messes with their preferred sense of order.

X2.

 

[nchls school]

I have a broody silkie that is on 2 eggs. She started off on 3 but at about four days in someone cracked it with their foot. She is on day 10. The eggs she is on are Cochin x Red Sex-link and either Cochin x Silkie or Cochin. She is in a nest box in the coop. Last time I had a broody I moved her and she quit. I am hoping to block the nest box from the other hens for the hatch. I am so excited!

Good luck. I hope you get the two.

 

[horselover1999]

Good luck. I hope you get the two.

Last time I had a broody she was on 6 eggs. By day 10 she was down to 2 eggs. I moved her to a different nest so the others would not crack them and she ended up quitting. My strategy this time is to keep her in the coop until the first chick hatches. Remove the chick until the last one hatches. Then, move mom and babies to the garage so they won't get pecked to death by aggressive hens. It should work.

 

[nchls school]

Last time I had a broody she was on 6 eggs. By day 10 she was down to 2 eggs. I moved her to a different nest so the others would not crack them and she ended up quitting. My strategy this time is to keep her in the coop until the first chick hatches. Remove the chick until the last one hatches. Then, move mom and babies to the garage so they won't get pecked to death by aggressive hens. It should work.

Sounds like you might have an egg eater. How many chickens do you have and what kind?

 

[horselover1999]

There are no egg eaters. One of them just went in to lay their egg and she cracked one with her foot. I have two red sex-links, two Cochins and two silkies. I have a Cochin rooster too.

 

[nchls school]

There are no egg eaters.That is good. One of them just went in to lay their egg and she cracked one with her foot. Consider checking their nails to see if they need to be clipped. I have two red sex-links, two Cochins and two silkies. I have a Cochin rooster too.

Overly long nails are often the reason for broken eggs. Broken eggs should not be a common occurance.

 

[KayTdid]

I have an eleven month old Jubilee Orpington named Maisy who was insistent that she needed to hatch eggs, so I let her keep two to hatch just to see what she'd do, this being her first time going broody. I checked on her this morning and she had a cute fuzzy chick and is still sitting on the other egg. Sooooo cute

 

[nchls school]

I have an eleven month old Jubilee Orpington named Maisy who was insistent that she needed to hatch eggs, so I let her keep two to hatch just to see what she'd do, this being her first time going broody. I checked on her this morning and she had a cute fuzzy chick and is still sitting on the other egg. Sooooo cute

Ahhhhhhh... Tennessee-my wife is coming to Tennessee next week to look at real estate. Any area of the state that is better for one reason or another? We are so tired of Wisconsin cold. We're moving to your state as soon as we can. Any information you could share would be most appreciated.

 

[KayTdid]

All parts of the state are beautiful with their own pros and cons. I guess it just depends on what you are looking for. You can pretty much find rural country anywhere, some places closer to cities than others. Most of the people I know would love to live in east TN to be near the Great Smokey Mountain national park. West Tennessee is not nearly as hilly, but it is close to both Memphis and Nashville. The closer to the larger cities you move, the higher the cost of living. I've lived in this state all my life and I love every part of it. Hope you find the place for you.