Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[georgialee]

My little Mille fleur Cochin hen is sitting on 15 eggs. I took out 2 that were unfertilized a few days ago and as of yesterday she had hatched 4 with some of the other eggs pipped. If she hatches all 15 I'm not sure how she's going to handle that, lol. It's her first time so I never dreamed she would do such a good job. I'll post pics once she comes off the nest.

 

[Fuffy]

Personally, I like to take the hen right away from the rest of the flock.

She stays there safe until the babies are about 6 weeks old and she starts getting a bit bored with the whole plan.

So then she goes in a sectioned off bit of the main run with her babies. The big girls will come and meet the babies and chow down on the grower's pellets. And then one fine day, the middle

bit of fence isn't there any more ...

 

[artsyrobin]

Quote:
ok, so now what about the heat? can the babies handle the heat? mine have been in the spare bathroom, with mom, so if i give them a section of the main run, it won't be a shock to them? or should i just put them out there in the morning before it gets hot?

 

[Skittlez]

hillbillycitygirl
Today 8:31 am Skittlez wrote:
hillbillycitygirl
Yesterday 11:23 pm first time chicken farmer with questions.....

We started with chickens about 3 months ago and I have about 40 in our flock, some as old as 3yrs and some that were hatched in April...
here are my questions:

my wyandotte went broody on Tuesday;
originally she only had one RR egg under her, but today when I put feed out she hopped down and I noticed she had two new eggs under her, one is a wyandotte and the other is one that one of my RR's lays once a week, its a double yolk, massive egg (its longer than my hand is wide)

#1.
should I leave her in the henhouse with the rest of the chickens? or should I take her somewhere else?
#2.
will the large egg hatch? I am not even sure the two RR eggs are fertile, but we have three roos, one bantam who sticks with his girls, one wyandotte who sticks with his girl and a pheonix who just kinda watches the flock and makes alot of noise...
#3.
how soon can I check to see if the eggs arent bad? is there a thread on here somewhere about how to candle eggs and what to look for?
#4. is it okay that one egg showed up on Tuesday and the other two arrived sometime today? (Friday)

She seems very serious about this whole broody thing and got quite mad at me when I went over to her nesting box (it had a fake egg in there too and I wanted to remove it..she got all pissy at me) lol

I have no idea what I am doing with this whole broody chicken thing, I was kinda hoping there would be some bantam eggs under her because I love my little mini-me chickeroos....is it too late so sneak a few of those under her?

Thanks!!!

ps...I started reading through this whole thread and there are almost 300 pages, I would have kept on reading but that would take me a few days so I just decided to post my questions. Thanks guys!!

I will try to help you with a few questions.

#1 It really depends on your flock and your coop set up to determine if you need to move her or not. If the other hens are forcing her off her nest, or pileing on top of her, I would either block off an area for her or move her. If you move her, do at dark. Is the nest box she is in a single box? Is it attached to anything? Sometimes you can just move the whole box, then you won't get pecked to death and shouldn't upset momma too much. I currently have 2 broodies in the dining room, and just moved another broody and her chicks to the basement brooder room. I like to keep my eye on them.

#2 Double yolkers don't usually hatch and survive, but there is always an exception to the rule. I personally would not incubate a double yolker, but that is just me.

#3 You can candle on day 7 and see if any veins and embryos are developing. There is a sticky on candleing that is really good. It is at the top of the page under this section.

#4 Adding eggs at a different time within a few days should hatch at the same time. Broodies have some kind 6th sense so to speak and rotate the eggs so they develop around the same. Now is the time to give her the bantam eggs if you want her to hatch them out.

Good luck with your broody, and don't forget pics of the new fuzzy butts when they hatch!

about moving her, she is in a pretty large coop, and I put some fake eggs in the other nesting boxes to encourage the hens to lay elsewhere, there are 7 nesting boxes for about 13 hens....all connected in a row...
if I move her to another little box in that room would that work? I dont know if her Roo would like to be away from her, he is sticking pretty close (sitting ontop of her box) can I just put a little box in a corner for her or will other hens still bug her? should it be higher or lower than the current nesting boxes? (I seriously have never done this before.)

If you move her to her own little box, see how she does. Try to do it at night when the other hens are in bed. The roo may be upset, but if the babies hatch and venture out, do you know if your roo will be kind to them? Will the other hens try to kill them? I would put her box on the floor, lower than the other boxes. I would also put up some wire or block her area untill the chicks are big enough to defend themselves. It really can go either way. Your broody can stay where she is untilll lockdown if the other hens leave her alone. If they are bothering her, I would move her. Most broodies will sit on their eggs anywhere you put them. Some will not. It depends on the hen. I like to bring mine in the house so they have quiet, I can candle the eggs, and I can make sure they are eating and drinking.​

 

[Fuffy]

Quote:
ok, so now what about the heat? can the babies handle the heat? mine have been in the spare bathroom, with mom, so if i give them a section of the main run, it won't be a shock to them? or should i just put them out there in the morning before it gets hot?

I'm pretty sure momma hen knows what to do. She has been a chicken longer than I have.

If it were me I'd put them out at night when everyone is asleep.

Shade would be good, though. Are there trees? Or could you rig up something? Even a parasol?

 

[artsyrobin]

oh yes, the pens are between the barn and house- and lots of trees- one of the cooler places- but its been in the high 90's so didn't want to put them out there if they couldn't handle the heat- these babies are 5 weeks- then i h ave the itsies that hatched yesterday- now i know what happens when one goes broody- its catching!

 

[hillbillycitygirl]

I tried snatching the eggs from her today to mark them, she wasnt having any bit of that idea. I got one, marked it and put it back with only minor injuries to my arm lol. I think there are 3 or 4 more eggs under there. I have been keeping an eye on her, to see if any of the other hens bother her, she can be a feisty one so Im not too concerned about her holding her own.

I did notice one of my RIR's wanting her box...there was a line up....because Wyandotte decided to go broody in the most desirable box lol. I will try moving her tonight..if I can keep all my fingers intact.

I am going to try to coax her out of her nesting box with a treat, we will see how this goes.

 

[joysgirl]

I wouldn't think the heat would bother them as long as they have water. And brooder houses are 95 degrees so ya don't think that would be a problem. Also If you watch them you can normally tell if they are uncomfortable. They make a horrid racket and if over heated they pant and their wings hang down. I normally don't go by thermometers but how they look. Good luck

 

[farmerChef]

I have 2 hatched! both are from in the bator, not under the broody.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Quote:
Well Congrats, are you going to put them under a broody?