Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[snow5164]

I have a question:
Can a silkie go broody because the younger silkies go under her to sleep ? She eats a little but stays puffed up all day. She sits on a floor level roost most of the day but sleeps in the " nesting box" ( unused so far ), with the two small silkies under her....... could she think she's their mommy???

 

[NysiaAnera]

I have a question:
Can a silkie go broody because the younger silkies go under her to sleep ? She eats a little but stays puffed up all day. She sits on a floor level roost most of the day but sleeps in the " nesting box" ( unused so far ), with the two small silkies under her....... could she think she's their mommy???

Sounds like she may have adopted them. :-D

 

[Poultrybonkers]

Well my broody has 8 kids ill be sticking another under her if it hatches as i have one egg due apparently lol

 

[Gingerpool]

I have my very first broody. I want to try hatching chicks under her but I don't know if she is fully broody or if this is just a temporary thing. My family is really worried that if we either give her newly hatched or eggs that hatch that she will abandon them or kill them. Does anybody know the likelihood this will happen?

 

[Violetsfeathers]

I have my very first broody. I want to try hatching chicks under her but I don't know if she is fully broody or if this is just a temporary thing. My family is really worried that if we either give her newly hatched or eggs that hatch that she will abandon them or kill them. Does anybody know the likelihood this will happen?

How old is she? How long has she been broody? All of my broodys have hatched out and taken care of their chicks wonderfully but they were broody for at least a week before I gave them real eggs, I let them sit on fake eggs for a while. Some broodys will wimp out after a week, others will sit for months on fake/real eggs. (I know because one hatch wasn't fertilized and she had to hatch another batch)

If you need some fake eggs you can get them from a craft store. I have bantams so I make my own eggs out of air-dry clay. When they're dry I paint them, then cover them with clear fingernail polish

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

Quote:
X 2! If she holds for a week on fake eggs, she is probably good. Just keep an eye on her when the chicks hatch to make sure she knows what she is doing.

 

[Gingerpool]

How many eggs should I put her on? Also my nest boxes are off the ground should I move one to the floor? Should I move her away from her sisters and put her in her own coop when she gets real eggs?

I am sorry I asked so many questions. I am just so curious(and nervous).

 

[Violetsfeathers]

How many eggs should I put her on? Also my nest boxes are off the ground should I move one to the floor? Should I move her away from her sisters and put her in her own coop when she gets real eggs?

I am sorry I asked so many questions. I am just so curious(and nervous).

My bantam is on two/ three eggs right now. My nest boxes are also off the floor, what can you do is leave her in there until 3 days before the chicks are hatch and block it off so they don't fall out. Or you can put her in a pen in the coop so she can see the other chickens with a nestbox on the floor with eggs in it, hopefully she will want to sit on that. I think what I'm going to do is when I give my hen real eggs I'll let her sit for a while in her nest box, and then, because I trust she won't abandon her eggs, move her to her own pen and nest for them to hatch in. Before 18 days.

It is good to ask questions better to ask lots of questions and do it right than to not know what you're doing, not ask questions, and mess up.

 

[nchls school]

How many eggs should I put her on? 6 to 12 depending on egg size and the size of the hen; fewer is better than more. Also my nest boxes are off the ground should I move one to the floor? If she is in a place where she won't be overly disturbed, I would leave her where she is and move as soon as the chicks hatch. Should I move her away from her sisters and put her in her own coop when she gets real eggs? Only if the sisters are bothering her. High nest boxes should be such that newly hatched chicks can't fall out.

I am sorry I asked so many questions. I am just so curious(and nervous).

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

My one Welbar insists on laying her egg with the broody. There are 6 other boxes to pick from.