So happy to discover this thread.
I just set ten Cream Legbar eggs under my broody Buff Orpington this weekend. Henrietta hatched Bielefelders for me last year.
I have a French Black Copper Marans hen who likes to go broody later in the summer. Last year she hatched Niederrheiners for me.
I am also trying hatch Cream Legbar eggs! They are so beautiful! I hope your hatch goes well.
This is my first experience with a broody hen (or eggs/chicks, for that matter) and I have several issues I'm trying to sort out. Here's the scenario:
- One of my Speckled Sussex, Taylor, went broody. After trying for 10 days to break her, I decided to let her fulfill her dream of being a mama, so I bought 6 fertilized Cream Legbar eggs to put under her. She is a devoted mama, but she was still getting up to eat, drink and poop.
- I candled the eggs on Day 1 and again on Day 6. Two of the 6 were yolkers and one looks like it died early (blood ring). But since I wasn't sure, I left them under her while I was out of town for the weekend.
- On Day 9 I got home, only to discover that my alpha chicken, Katy, has also gone broody and they were sharing a nest box. I candled the eggs again and confirmed my suspicions that only 3 of the 6 were viable, but I wanted to at separate the girls, so I gave them each 3 eggs--Taylor has 2 viable egg and one dead one; Katy has one viable egg and 2 dead ones. They are now living in adjacent nest boxes, apparently contentedly (although Katy pushed Taylor out of the preferred box). My concerns are:
1) If I leave the yolkers and the dead egg there, will they explode? Would it be better to only give them one or two live eggs?
2) I'm worried that Taylor isn't taking care of herself now because she's afraid if she leaves the box, Katy will steal her eggs. Her comb and wattles have gotten very pale over the last few days, although I am trying to throw them both out of the box to eat twice a day. Should I try to put food and water in the nest box?
3) Since their schedules are out of whack, will they both go into lockdown at the right time? Taylor has been broody for 20 days, the eggs are 10 days old, and Katy has been broody for 5 days.
4) If they each hatch a chick or two, will they fight over them? They have both been incredibly sweet hens so far--I've never seen them peck each other at all--but who knows what hormones will do.
5) What does my other hen, Britney, think of all this? She's all by herself now and can't figure out what's going on. (Because it's such a small flock to begin with, and they have always gotten along so well, I didn't want to separate them, although I know PDRiverman will tell me I should.
Any wisdom you all have to share would be much appreciated!