Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[AnneInTheBurbs]

I ask because when my boyfriend or I forces her off the nest (and we have had to force her off to go do her business the last two days!),

If she is sitting on fertile eggs, and you want her to hatch them, then I recommend just leaving her alone and letting her do her thing. When she is being forced off the nest, it is stressing her out. Broody hens will get off the nest on their own when they need to, they don't need help. It is instinctual, they know what to do. By continuing to force her off the nest, you may end up breaking her broodiness and either losing any developing chicks, or have to attempt to save the eggs by incubating them inside.

Good info from NysiaAnera. I set over 150 broody hens in just 3 years, with 72 of those the last year----NEVER have I---now would I removed a hen from her nest. They know what they are doing----I just leave them alone(yes ALL are moved to private hatching pens) and I have all great hatches and great brooding and no fighting because she is alone with her chicks. Love them broodies.

Do you move your hens after they are ona clutch of eggs? How do you do it? At night? I have wanted to, but haven't tried it yet.

 

[MasAhora]

I agree, the eggs should be fine to set, and set you should if you want them fertile from the rooster that just passed.

A hen stays fertile after breeding for about 10 to 15 days. Sometime, but rarely, she can remain fertile from the rooster up to 30 days.

Eggs are best set within a week of being laid, then hatchability begins to decrease with eggs 14 days old with much less likelihood of hatching.

So if you want chicks from that rooster, let the hens set or put the eggs in the incubator now.

Good luck.
LofMc

Thanks for the info. I am reliant on broody hens so I have to take my chances. Power outages here are unpredictable hence we have a generator, and no incubator. Would you believe it, I just broke a broody hen who is a proven good mama, a few days ago! The pullets hid their nests well and I only discovered them after my boy died and I then had a change of heart...we're going into autumn and I most likely have dry pox scabs around the place still virulent from an outbreak this summer. So if these two pullets set and if the eggs are viable, I will have to move them just before hatch to a "least" infected area....that is a lot of "if's" in this scenario!!

 

[PD-Riverman]

Do you move your hens after they are ona clutch of eggs? How do you do it? At night? I have wanted to, but haven't tried it yet.

I do this-----when I have a hen going broody---I keep removing ALL the Eggs from under her each day----If I want her to set I might add fake eggs until I make sure she is going to stay on the nest----I NEVER allow her to keep the eggs under her nor do I ever use a egg I take from under her daily as part of her clutch of eggs I am collecting. I get her private hatching pen ready with food and water some distance away from her future nest. I place her collected clutch of eggs under her late in the evening and remove fake eggs.

That night under the cover of darkness(this is important) I quietly move her nest and all---by picking up the movable nest(yes that's important too) to her new location by setting the nest down in her new home---close the door and walk away quietly----without any type of light and I keep a almost dead flash light should I need to quickly flash the light on to get my bearings and right back off.

The next morning this new broody will start to see as day breaks, her new surroundings, her food/water setting over there and no chickens or people bothering her--feel all the eggs under her----she will be happy---LOL. I do not even go close to her nest the next day---look from a distance---let her settle in.

This has Not worked just once or twice---I have moved over 150 hens in 3 years and it has worked for every move---never has one rejected the move. Sure some people can move a broody by grabbing her and tuck her under one arm and grab the eggs and stick her in a private cage with plenty of noise and LOTS of lights, then fill up her feed bowl and fill the water, etc, etc, etc---LOL and some broodies will stay without a problem. Most of my many broodies are game hens----they are not very friendly anyway----but they Hatch good and are great mothers----I do not think they would go for that type of move.

If you got any questions about any part of my post or why---just ask!

 

[MasAhora]

Sometimes the chicks from the first few eggs layed are a little smaller as adults, but they are usually still perfectly healthy. The hens will continue to lay fertitlized eggs for at least 21 days after the rooster passes away and can still be laying some fertitlized eggs 35 days later

Thanks for the info. The daddy (more a meaty bird than a DP like the pullets) was called Thunder Thighs....the ground shook when he came running to me (ummm to my feed bucket!) and although I intensely dislike the band ACDC, everytime Thunder Thighs came running I had to sing their stupid 'song' THUNDERstruck...and giggle. If the eggs do make it, then perhaps the size of their daddy might come into play. It's all wait and see now.

 

[NysiaAnera]

Do you move your hens after they are ona clutch of eggs? How do you do it? At night? I have wanted to, but haven't tried it yet.

I have moved a couple of broodies, but decided it was not worth it. They moved just fine (moved after dark very carefully, with a very tiny amount of light), but after the chicks hatched, the mommas did NOT appreciate being away from the flock. It ended up being a horrible situation, and we decided never to do it again. We just leave our broodies where they are. I choose the eggs I want brooded and I draw a line around them. Then I remove any newly laid eggs from other hens daily. At day 18-19 we put up a "maternity screen" to keep the hatching chicks in the nest. After they are all hatched, we remove the screen and let the mommas do their thing. They are much happier staying with the flock. Then they just choose for themselves where they want to nest, and everyone is happy.

 

[NysiaAnera]

Well, shoot. I am not sure what is going on with this broody... lately she seems to be getting confused and getting back on the wrong nest. I found the eggs cold today. I candled and removed 4. The remaining 5 (one got broke a week ago) may not have made it, but I left them just in case. I sure hope she hasn't given them up.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Well, shoot. I am not sure what is going on with this broody... lately she seems to be getting confused and getting back on the wrong nest. I found the eggs cold today. I candled and removed 4. The remaining 5 (one got broke a week ago) may not have made it, but I left them just in case. I sure hope she hasn't given them up.

This is one of the main reasons for moving my broodies. When the broody takes a break and comes back---if another hen is setting on her eggs laying a egg----the broody sets on another nest that probably has a egg or two in it----when the hen that was laying the egg leaves the set egg nest-----then the eggs get cold and die. Happens a lot. Another reason is seeing the chicks get pecked and some killed when they are young---by other hens. I do not have to deal with either of those two problems.

 

[NysiaAnera]

This is one of the main reasons for moving my broodies. When the broody takes a break and comes back---if another hen is setting on her eggs laying a egg----the broody sets on another nest that probably has a egg or two in it----when the hen that was laying the egg leaves the set egg nest-----then the eggs get cold and die. Happens a lot. Another reason is seeing the chicks get pecked and some killed when they are young---by other hens. I do not have to deal with either of those two problems.

Yep, I know of a lot of people who move their broodies, but it just isn't worth it for me. We seldom have broodies go to the wrong nest, though it does happen occasionally. I have one hen who is so good, that when someone else gets in her nest to lay an egg, she will sit in front of the box or go in another box and wait, and then jump out and run back to her nest when the other hen leaves. This particular hen has done it 3 times in the past 4 days. It makes me wonder if she knows something I don't about the developing chicks.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Yep, I know of a lot of people who move their broodies, but it just isn't worth it for me. We seldom have broodies go to the wrong nest, though it does happen occasionally. I have one hen who is so good, that when someone else gets in her nest to lay an egg, she will sit in front of the box or go in another box and wait, and then jump out and run back to her nest when the other hen leaves. This particular hen has done it 3 times in the past 4 days. It makes me wonder if she knows something I don't about the developing chicks.

Can I ask a question, you say it is not worth it to you and you also said it was a "horrible situation"? What made it a horrible situation?

 

[Violetsfeathers]

This is one of the main reasons for moving my broodies. When the broody takes a break and comes back---if another hen is setting on her eggs laying a egg----the broody sets on another nest that probably has a egg or two in it----when the hen that was laying the egg leaves the set egg nest-----then the eggs get cold and die. Happens a lot. Another reason is seeing the chicks get pecked and some killed when they are young---by other hens. I do not have to deal with either of those two problems.

What I do is put a door on the nest and I take them out a couple times a day and watch them until they go back to the right nest so I can close the door again. That would stop other hens from laying in there too. Then I move them once the chicks are strong enough