Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[ElitePoultry]

Why are you moving them? It sounds like they have a great system setup. I would just leave them where they are and let them co hatch this brood.

My Silky Topsy had her daughter Vanilla Ice pop into the nest with her to help hatch her last brood. It's completely normal. And then after they hatched the two co mommaed them. Topsy quit at four weeks, but Vanilla stayed with them until nine weeks.

If you must move them/her I'd first determine which is truly broody and which is a wanna be. My guess is the night sitter is the broody. Once she stops laying its pretty certain to be her. Then move her at night. I make sure there's hardly any light and cover her head with a towel for added darkness. Then put the eggs under her once she's in place. It's better to wait until you are sure she will stay in the new nest to give her the real eggs. But in your case, just give them to her by putting them under her one at a time. She will settle in on them for the night.

Here are Topsy (black) and Vanilla Ice (white) in the nest box with their newly hatched chicks.

And here's a front picture of that nest box area

I really wish I could. and this comes at the worst time. My flock of Brahmas sold to a guy coming to get them monday. I have told him im keeping the broody until she hatches the chicks. But I cant keep both broodys.

This kind of sucks.

But thank you for the information guys!

 

[dretd]

Oh how did I forget?! I was given one who hatched out 15 all by herself.

How incredibly sweet is that! 15?! She must have super-natural abilities to flatten herself out to cover them all! Chicken super-hero Elasta-pancake Hen!

 

[Debs55]

Hey guys I have a question. I have a silkie hen who started sitting on eggs yesterday and I was gonna give her whatever eggs were laid today so that she'd have four or five. But it doesn't look like I'm gonna get any today because we've been having really stormy weather. But I do have eggs inside from 2 and 3 days ago. They haven't be turned small end down like they should have been but they haven't been cold or shaken up. Would it be worth a try to put them under her?

 

[Moni]

Well I had to move my little broody Jap banty today. I have a cage that I move my sitting hens to when they are about a week from hatching. I use hooded cat litter boxes for nests so it makes it easy to move the whole nest when ready. And a cage to themselves gives them privacy and keeps the bitties safe after they hatch. Well anyhoooo, i had to move her early because she started stressing out because there was a nest of eggs right beside her in another litter box. She is wanting to sit on both!!! She has been sitting on her original nest for 4 days. She just started this today. So i put her back on her original nest and relocated her. I'm not worried about other nest because half of the eggs belong to my other little Jap and she always goes broody when she finishes laying. Just another day in the CHICKEN DRAMA!!!!

 

[Johnn]

How incredibly sweet is that! 15?! She must have super-natural abilities to flatten herself out to cover them all! Chicken super-hero Elasta-pancake Hen!

Yep, I know, I was shocked too! And think that might not have been a 100% hatch rate either!

 

[Johnn]

Ok so I MIGHT have a broody, I'm not sure though so I am not going to get a head of myself. There is a possibility she layed the egg last night but if not she layed it today and is still on the nest, she came off for food but then took herself back. She has been trying to pull eggs out of other nests to put in with her then when I give her them she quickly pulls them under. I'm not sure if I want her to be though, I don't know if she will be a good mother and I would rather it was the Orpington instead because this hen is the best layer! She has also been lifting straw over herself too but one thing that makes me think she isn't broody is that she hasn't fluffed up at me or sqwaked at me but I guess it is only her first day if she is, what do you's think??

 

[Aris]

I was hoping for a broody since the last days of February ,today I went to the bantam coop to collect the eggs and I found not one but TWO hens to fight for the dominance of an egg clutch ,I divided the eggs to two different nests and added during the afternoun a few more from my LF chickens ,also put a barrier to separate them from the rest of the flock, now they happily brood side by side, the birchen has 1 LF and 9 bantam eggs and the red 5 LF and 3 bantam eggs ,I hope they will know to which nest to return after their first ''lunch break'' , wish me good luck

, I'll update in 3 weeks .



So I guess broodiness must contagious since out of a flock of nine hens two decided to go broody the same day and a third is making the typical '' I am protecting my nest '' sounds and stays a little longer than usually at the nest.

 

[elsfieldchickens]

Oh how did I forget?! I was given one who hatched out 15 all by herself.

to cute!

 

[karlamaria]

Ok so I MIGHT have a broody, I'm not sure though so I am not going to get a head of myself. There is a possibility she layed the egg last night but if not she layed it today and is still on the nest, she came off for food but then took herself back. She has been trying to pull eggs out of other nests to put in with her then when I give her them she quickly pulls them under. I'm not sure if I want her to be though, I don't know if she will be a good mother and I would rather it was the Orpington instead because this hen is the best layer! She has also been lifting straw over herself too but one thing that makes me think she isn't broody is that she hasn't fluffed up at me or sqwaked at me but I guess it is only her first day if she is, what do you's think??

she is broody lol

 

[Johnn]

she is broody lol

I can't make my mind up weather I want her to be or not...