Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[Miss Lydia]

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Congrats.. keep us updated...

 

[lswatson111304]

OK, so if I move her to a broody box...do I do it now, wait till the eggs come, or just like a day or so before they are expected?

 

[chookhead]

yes butt he problem is that there is no where for her to brood like whenver i am near her she will be like buk buk buk buk buk and spreading all her feathers and i dunno i put eggs in a mower catcher but she wants privacy btu she sint laying and she acts like a broody on her break

 

[mama24]

ARG! Priscilla, my Pyncheon bantam I posted the pic of on the last page QUIT! I am so so so upset! I would be so upset if she wasn't sitting on some very special eggs! She had been trying to go broody for a few days when a raccoon killed our only Sultan hen, my oldest son's very favorite bird! In the middle of the day, no less! Our neighbor saw it with the hen in its mouth and set his dog on it, but it got away. So I took all of Annie's eggs out of the fridge and put them under Priscilla! She quit 1 week before they were due!!! I'm so mad at her! I think at least 2 are still alive, but they were ice cold when I got them out of her nest and put them in the incubator. I'm hoping once they warm up and settle in into the incubator that I'll see some movement in some of the others.

Please send some good wishes their way! We were really hoping to have some of sweet Annie's babies make it!

I know i can get some Sultan chicks in the spring, but my son was very attached to Annie, and I know it will mean a lot to him to get at least one of her babies hatched healthy!

She's only 8 months old and had only been laying for about 3 weeks when she went broody, so I guess I shouldn't be upset with her for quitting, but I am. Pokey, the splash mama I also posted pics of is the exact same age and she hatched out 5 healthy babies 2 months ago! 2 were taken by a darn hawk, but she has been an excellent mama to them!

 

[Miss Lydia]

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I'm sorry your hen quit, never a good reason for it either, did you check the nest box to make sure their weren't any mites in it? sometimes that will cause them to quit. But don't give up on the eggs, all of us have had a hen get off the nest and her eggs get cold and they still hatched. Amazing huh? good luck and let us know how it goes.. and so sorry for your loss.

 

[Miss Lydia]

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you can move her now but be sure to keep her closed up for a while till she is use to the new nest or she'll just go back to the old one, most seem to have better luck waiting till chicks just hatch and moving mama and her brood then, you know your setup the best so your the best to make that judgement. keep an egg under her till the fertile ones come then in the night go out and remove the old egg and slip the new ones under her she'll be pleased as punch.

 

[Miss Lydia]

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why can't you leave her in the coop? or move her to a dog crate where she can have her privacy.

 

[lswatson111304]

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you can move her now but be sure to keep her closed up for a while till she is use to the new nest or she'll just go back to the old one, most seem to have better luck waiting till chicks just hatch and moving mama and her brood then, you know your setup the best so your the best to make that judgement. keep an egg under her till the fertile ones come then in the night go out and remove the old egg and slip the new ones under her she'll be pleased as punch.

OK, heres the deal. MY brooder box (that I wanted to use as a broody box) is not in the coop, its on my covered porch. I do have a large dog kennel that I could make into a broody box. Other than that, she is in the nest right now in a raised box. Its like 3.5 feet off the ground. I can't put the brooder box in the coop or run. I can fit the large kennel in the run or coop. If she needs to be penned up for a while I can do that, but does she eventually need to be able to leave the box? I mean, there should be enough room for her to get up and move around and have food/water in either one of my broody box options, but does she need more room to get away from the nest or not?
And for food, I'm not sure she has left her nest AT ALL. When I move her, should I put the food and water really close to her, or further away so she has to get up to get it?

 

[artsyrobin]

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this may sound tacky but i have heard of people hatching them in their bra?? an emergency measure?

i gave cindylou 4 standard eggs, the roo is an EE, and my only BO has started laying again!!

and a brahma and 2 EE's, she just tucked them away.... hmmmm so will she be ok sitting another 3 weeks?

 

[Miss Lydia]

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you can move her now but be sure to keep her closed up for a while till she is use to the new nest or she'll just go back to the old one, most seem to have better luck waiting till chicks just hatch and moving mama and her brood then, you know your setup the best so your the best to make that judgement. keep an egg under her till the fertile ones come then in the night go out and remove the old egg and slip the new ones under her she'll be pleased as punch.

OK, heres the deal. MY brooder box (that I wanted to use as a broody box) is not in the coop, its on my covered porch. I do have a large dog kennel that I could make into a broody box. Other than that, she is in the nest right now in a raised box. Its like 3.5 feet off the ground. I can't put the brooder box in the coop or run. I can fit the large kennel in the run or coop. If she needs to be penned up for a while I can do that, but does she eventually need to be able to leave the box? I mean, there should be enough room for her to get up and move around and have food/water in either one of my broody box options, but does she need more room to get away from the nest or not?
And for food, I'm not sure she has left her nest AT ALL. When I move her, should I put the food and water really close to her, or further away so she has to get up to get it?

You need to put her food and water far enough away that she has to at least stand up and walk a little to eat and drink. I hope someone who has brooded inside a dog kennel will speak up about if you can leave her or not inside of it. I haven't removed mine from the coop and I had 9 broodys this past spring and summer. you deff. don't want her to hatch her chicks 3.5 ft. up, i put all my nest boxes on the floor and my dh built a slopped roof to go over them for privacy that way when chicks hatch they are already on the floor, you could leave her where she is for now and like a day or 2 before the hatch starts then move her to the dog crate and keep her and chicks in it till all have hatched and she is ready to bring them out, which is usually 24-36 hrs after hatch. Or wait till they start hatching then move or wait till all have hatched then move but then you risk the first hatches could fall out of the nest.