Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[kharmon320]

I have an early hatcher under my broody. All eggs she is sitting on were laid on a Sunday, she went broody on that Sunday. I wasn't expecting chicks until tomorrow. Saturday would make day 19 if they were started on a Sunday right?

Saturday would be day 20 and Sunday 21. Mine started on a Sunday also and hers started hatching yesterday. There are 6 out of 9 so far that I can see.

 

[ameliadanielle]

I guess I never counted one day until the hen had been sitting for a day. Here thought I had an extremely early hatcher... now I'm wondering why the other eggs are doing nothing.

 

[ameliadanielle]

Well we have one at least! It's peeping away. It looks like it's trying to escape and she keeps tucking it back under. I've never seen a newly hatched chick that active. I haven't seen it but the way her feathers are moving it looks like it's rolling around under her wing. Lol. I'm expecting a head to pop out any second.

 

[kharmon320]

Here are a few of the babies so far. The eggs were a mix, so I have no idea what's what. If anyone would like to take a guess, there should be a mix of Blue/maybe a Lavender Ameraucana Rooster over a Black ameraucana hen. I think the black is split lavender because my friend had chicks that were 3-4 weeks old that were very light gray. There were also the same rooster over Buff Orpingtons, Black Sex Link, and a Barred Rock. I have seen one gray chick with a white dot on the back of the head. I'm guessing it's a blue barred male.

I do not know which eggs are left unhatched at this point. I hope the Ameraucana eggs hatch.

 

[jaymejojos]

Final count was 8 of 11. Two eggs never formed and the third died before hatching or absorbing the yolk.

We also lost one chick.... She and another baby somehow got out of the nest box and wandered into a corner - we think they got a chill. One was dead when I found them and other was very close to death - I snatched her up and rubbed her belly and chest while I rushed her in to the house. My husband set up a brooder quickly while I held her under a lamp. A few hours later and after a little snuggling with one of her sisters she was peeping and wobbling around. By morning they looked so good we took them back out to Gertie (our broody hen) and she accepted them back.

Sad that we lost one but happy that I could rehabilitate one.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Final count was 8 of 11. Two eggs never formed and the third died before hatching or absorbing the yolk.

We also lost one chick.... She and another baby somehow got out of the nest box and wandered into a corner - we think they got a chill. One was dead when I found them and other was very close to death - I snatched her up and rubbed her belly and chest while I rushed her in to the house. My husband set up a brooder quickly while I held her under a lamp. A few hours later and after a little snuggling with one of her sisters she was peeping and wobbling around. By morning they looked so good we took them back out to Gertie (our broody hen) and she accepted them back.

Sad that we lost one but happy that I could rehabilitate one.

Glad you saved the one. Yea I make it a point on young broody hatched chicks to go out at dark to make sure all the chicks have gotten in the nest and under mother and look in on them when I walk by during the day! Good Luck!

 

[kharmon320]

Here are a few of the babies so far. The eggs were a mix, so I have no idea what's what. If anyone would like to take a guess, there should be a mix of Blue/maybe a Lavender Ameraucana Rooster over a Black ameraucana hen. I think the black is split lavender because my friend had chicks that were 3-4 weeks old that were very light gray. There were also the same rooster over Buff Orpingtons, Black Sex Link, and a Barred Rock. I have seen one gray chick with a white dot on the back of the head. I'm guessing it's a blue barred male.

I do not know which eggs are left unhatched at this point. I hope the Ameraucana eggs hatch.

Well, that was quicker than I thought. Maybe they started hatching Friday night. I went out there about an hour ago and Rosemary had 7 little chicks in the broody box run. One seems a bit weaker, but it may be the last to hatch. There were 2 eggs in the nest box. One didn't have anything in it and the other was a dark brown egg, but I "think" it was a quitter. I'm going to assume since Rosemary left it, it should be tossed. I don't have an incubator, so that's not an option. I hear nothing at all from the egg. I really hate throwing it out, but don't know what else I could do at this point. All three Ameraucana eggs hatched. There are several with fuzzy cheeks, but that's to be expected as the rooster is Ameraucana. I'll take more photos soon.

 

[kharmon320]

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So, I thought I heard something in this egg, brought it in, warmed it up, etc., but it has a huge air cell is across the long side (next reply). This pic shows some dark blobs further around the egg. It's trash, right?

 

[kharmon320]

Here's the air cell.

 

[h2oratt]

Anyone online? My broody will be technically in lockdown tomorrow. I have her in a cat litter box. How important is it to turn it upside down tonight.(so the chicks could actually go out) The chicks won't be able to get out the way it's set up now. How does it work with a broody hatch? The chicks hatch out and just hang out until the hatch is over? So I can just leave the box as is until the official hatch is over, then flip the box so they can follow mom off the nest?