Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[bobbieschicks]

I put the little partridge silky in with Topsy tonight so they could keep each other company and warm. Hoping they get along and neither hurts the other over night. I wasn't going to move her in so quick, but I noticed she keeps getting pecked at by the older ones. I'm pretty sure the partridge baby is a pullet too. Maybe she will be another Vanilla Ice for Topsy. Not that she would need help hatching anything. Is still don't plan on hatching any eggs anytime soon. Topsy just started back laying a few days ago.

 

[Johnn]

I put the little partridge silky in with Topsy tonight so they could keep each other company and warm. Hoping they get along and neither hurts the other over night. I wasn't going to move her in so quick, but I noticed she keeps getting pecked at by the older ones. I'm pretty sure the partridge baby is a pullet too. Maybe she will be another Vanilla Ice for Topsy. Not that she would need help hatching anything. Is still don't plan on hatching any eggs anytime soon. Topsy just started back laying a few days ago.

It will be good if they get along, low hens need a friend.

 

[Johnn]

Asparagus mated his mother today, it looked so wrong!

 

[bobbieschicks]

                           [COLOR=0000CD]Hi, it's me again![/COLOR]

 Ok, today is is 64 in western PA and sunny. I opened the pop door to let the birds out. First time in weeks. May, the younger pullet got off the nest. She is not sitting eggs.[COLOR=006400]Ok, what do I do now?[/COLOR] Her older 1/2 sis, March must be sitting eggs because she hasn't stirred off the nest, even with the inviting open door to a sunny run. [COLOR=800080]What do I do now?[/COLOR]  I need May to start laying. Should I put her alone in the empty bachelor's quarters and hope she starts laying eggs for me again? Apparently all she has been doing so far is keeping her 1/2 sis company.
 Advice really welcomed.
 Karen

Nice weather

Are you certain she's not laying eggs that are now under May? If she's not broody, then she's probably already laying somewhere or will start soon now that the days are longer.

 

[3riverschick]

Hi, it's me again!

Ok, today is is 64 in western PA and sunny. I opened the pop door to let the birds out. First time in weeks. May, the younger pullet got off the nest. She is not sitting eggs.Ok, what do I do now? Her older 1/2 sis, March must be sitting eggs because she hasn't stirred off the nest, even with the inviting open door to a sunny run. What do I do now? I need May to start laying. Should I put her alone in the empty bachelor's quarters and hope she starts laying eggs for me again? Apparently all she has been doing so far is keeping her 1/2 sis company.
Advice really welcomed.
Karen
=================================================
Nice weather

Are you certain she's not laying eggs that are now under May? If she's not broody, then she's
probably already laying somewhere or will start soon now that the days are longer.
---------------------------------------

Hi,
They were both laying before March went broody. She's not laying anywhere else.
I checked closely. Never occurred to me Mays' eggs might be under March. Hum, I need May to start laying more eggs in spite of what March may be sitting upon. Do you think March will leave her eggs if I take May out of the coop? I can worry about pecking order later.
Best,
Karen

 

[CoopChick719]

I put the little partridge silky in with Topsy tonight so they could keep each other company and warm. Hoping they get along and neither hurts the other over night. I wasn't going to move her in so quick, but I noticed she keeps getting pecked at by the older ones. I'm pretty sure the partridge baby is a pullet too. Maybe she will be another Vanilla Ice for Topsy. Not that she would need help hatching anything. Is still don't plan on hatching any eggs anytime soon. Topsy just started back laying a few days ago.

It will be good if they get along, low hens need a friend.

I hope they get along too. Chiquita was roosting with Janice before Janice went broody. She was a little lonely at first but tonight she's roosting beside the roo & his favorite girl. Go figure!

Bobbie, you were right! Janice has moved the chicks to a different corner of the coop. Right under the nesting boxes, where everyone hangs out! She's taking up some prime real estate. It may have also had something to do with her sister, Blue, hopping in the original nest with her then kicking bedding in J's face while she had the babies under her.

 

[bobbieschicks]

I hope they get along too. Chiquita was roosting with Janice before Janice went broody. She was a little lonely at first but tonight she's roosting beside the roo & his favorite girl. Go figure!

Bobbie, you were right! Janice has moved the chicks to a different corner of the coop. Right under the nesting boxes, where everyone hangs out! She's taking up some prime real estate. It may have also had something to do with her sister, Blue, hopping in the original nest with her then kicking bedding in J's face while she had the babies under her.

Yes, I've not observed my broodies staying in their old nests - pretty much both of them for all 9 hatches moved the babies to another place after they hatched. Sometimes it was just a few inches away, sometimes the other side of the coop.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Hi, it's me again!

Ok, today is is 64 in western PA and sunny. I opened the pop door to let the birds out. First time in weeks. May, the younger pullet got off the nest. She is not sitting eggs.Ok, what do I do now? Her older 1/2 sis, March must be sitting eggs because she hasn't stirred off the nest, even with the inviting open door to a sunny run. What do I do now? I need May to start laying. Should I put her alone in the empty bachelor's quarters and hope she starts laying eggs for me again? Apparently all she has been doing so far is keeping her 1/2 sis company.
Advice really welcomed.
Karen
=================================================
Nice weather

Are you certain she's not laying eggs that are now under May? If she's not broody, then she's
probably already laying somewhere or will start soon now that the days are longer.
---------------------------------------

Hi,
They were both laying before March went broody. She's not laying anywhere else.
I checked closely. Never occurred to me Mays' eggs might be under March. Hum, I need May to start laying more eggs in spite of what March may be sitting upon. Do you think March will leave her eggs if I take May out of the coop? I can worry about pecking order later.
Best,
Karen

If she was laying, stopped laying to go broody, and is still broody but has no eggs under her to hatch - she will eventually quit being broody on her own without your intervention. But if she's cobroody with another broody she may wait for the eggs to hatch and then help raise them.

Forgot to add - the chicken sitting on the eggs is unlikely to quit being broody until the eggs hatch - the one not on eggs may or may not quit being broody. However, I don't interfere in their choices any more as I find they know best what to do as they are the chickens.

She may be like my Vanilla Ice - a pullet who wasn't broody but who also wasn't laying (yet) - she hopped into the nest with Topsy and stayed with her long after Topsy's eggs hatched to co raise the babies. They were about 4 weeks old when Topsy left them to the roost but VI stayed with them until about 12 weeks old. Vanilla just started laying a few days ago for the 1st time.

This most recent time when Topsy went broody, she stopped being broody around the 14th day after I kept taking her eggs away and she was not laying. I let her stay on her nest and didn't interfere in that - so if I would have moved her would she have given up being broody sooner? who knows. She started laying again a little over a week after she stopped being broody.

Topsy is one of those silkies who hears the word "broody" and she sits down.

 

[bobbieschicks]

I put the little partridge silky in with Topsy tonight so they could keep each other company and warm. Hoping they get along and neither hurts the other over night. I wasn't going to move her in so quick, but I noticed she keeps getting pecked at by the older ones. I'm pretty sure the partridge baby is a pullet too. Maybe she will be another Vanilla Ice for Topsy. Not that she would need help hatching anything. Is still don't plan on hatching any eggs anytime soon. Topsy just started back laying a few days ago.

So I went out after sun up to open the outer run for everyone to escape into the yard. I could hear some noises coming from the side where Topsy is housed. When I opened the door - the little partridge silky was attempting to hide herself in the cat carrier I have in their for Topsy's nestbox. She wasn't successful because Topsy was already hiding in there LOL! It took a bit of time to grab her up as she tried to escape all over the place - finally grabbed her and tossed her out of the coop. The partridge silky was content to rush away to the rest of the flock. Topsy was happily settling down on her ping pong ball to sit. Tospy isn't broody, but she is good at watching all forms of eggs - even fake ones.

I probably won't put the partridge in there tonight - they don't need the warmth and it seems they were pretty aggitated this morning.

 

[delisha]

Thought I would post some updated pictures..mom and chicks are all doing well even in this bitter cold weather. We have had some -12 days and I expected frozen chicks, but, they were all nice and active.