Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[southernmomma]

If I were approaching this broody issue, I would go in one of two directions -- either get a breed that is frequently, annoyingly broody to do a very specific job within the flock and not worry about its other skills, or I would get a breed that I really like in general and search out a particularly broody strain. (There can be quite a difference between lines and between individuals within the same breed. I have seven Barnevelder hens from the same line. Five have never gone broody. One goes broody like an average broody hen, but will maintain the brood for months if nothing hatches and I don't break her brood. One goes broody with such a deep trance that she has to be tube fed daily or she will die of dehydration before she starves to death, and does not come out of the trance at all unless I rub ice cubes on her cheeks, which I need to do to get her to stand up and poop, as no amount of harassment, including tube feeding, will wake her up. She will maintain that depth of brood for months if I didn't break her brood -- she is actually the reason I've gotten so efficient at breaking broods, as she is quite stubborn, and goes broody quite frequently.)

Or you could get Dorkings, which have all the qualities that you're looking for, but I may be a bit nearsighted about my favorite breed!

I thought I'd settled on a breed and was set to begin further research into breeders, lines, etc but I've come back to this over and over again and I'm seriously questioning what are important traits for my flock and how to accomplish it with just a single breed ......you've got me thinking Sydney Acres!!

Cheers
M

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote:
Oh dear, that's me, causing trouble again!!

Aren't you the person who posted a few week back on the Buckeye thread that you were considering Buckeyes for meat, another breed for eggs (I'm remembering Speckled Sussex, but that might be wrong, probably thinking that because that's what I have), and game hens for brooding? You had this wonderful homestead plan that was all pre-planned and I was so impressed with it.

As much as I love my Red Dorkings, and as much as I want to start breeding them to the SOP to help improve the quality of this rare breed, I don't think I would get them as my only breed if I were setting up the homestead that you're planning (I hope you're the same person, or this isn't going to make any sense). When I said that Dorkings have all the qualities that you're looking for (in the above quote), I meant in reference to being reliably broody, being excellent mothers, and having excellent foraging abilities. Essentially, all the qualities you were mentioning that you wanted for your broodies (probably 2-3 quotes ago). But in regards to egg production, they aren't one of the best dual purpose breeds for that because they brood so often, so their yearly egg count is much less than other dual purpose breeds, unless you spend a lot of time repeatedly breaking their broods. And their meat is some of the best out there, but they are barely ready to process at six months old, and nine months is better.

So from a specialized brooding point of view, or a hobby breeder point of view, or from a "I'd like a few pet hens that free range and forage well" point of view, they're the best (ok, maybe I'm a little prejudiced here -- some other breeds are great too). But from a production homestead point of view, they're probably not the best for all three jobs of brooding, egg production, and meat production. I honestly like your first plan of having three different breeds for three different jobs better than having one breed do it all.

I love that you're researching everything so much before you jump in, but try not to get yourself set on any breed until you try at least 5-10 of them. You may absolutely love each breed you chose, or you may find that one of them isn't right for you. I spent 3 years looking for my Barnevelders. Everything I read about them made me think they were the perfect breed for me. But once I got them I was disappointed (sorry Barnevelder lovers, if there's any of you reading this). They're not a horrible bird, but they just didn't meet my expectations, and don't thrive as well as other breeds under my management style. I tried 2 different lines, and both had different disappointments, so I've slaughtered all the cockerels, and will likely slaughter most of the hens after they finish laying this year. The Dorkings, on the other hand, I knew nothing about but had them sent to me when a supplier was unable to fill my order for Buckeyes. I fell in love with them immediately, and have been totally enthralled ever since. I'm not saying that you should just randomly pick breeds out of a catalog, as the Dorking substitution had an equal chance of going horribly wrong. But just be sure to keep an open mind, even after you've made up your mind, because you may decide to change your mind after you've worked with the breed(s) you choose.

Please keep posting about your homestead plans, and what decisions you're making regarding your birds. I love reading about it.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote:
I don't know the brooding tenacity of an Ameraucana hen, but my hatching book rates them as good to fair broodies. That may or may not be strong enough for an incompletely tame hen to remain broody if she's picked up off the nest repeatedly. Be very careful and watch for any reluctance to go back to her nest as soon as she sees her eggs, and be sure that her nest is in a quiet and dimly lit area to encourage broody behavior..

Since you're keeping her broody to raise shipped chicks, be sure that there are either ceramic eggs, or throw-away eggs, or something else under her that she thinks are eggs. I would use a minimum of 2, but 4 might be better. I don't know if this is true or not, but I've been told that the "average" broody will abandon her brood after 7-10 days if there's no eggs in the nest, or 28-30 days if there's eggs but no hatch or detectable chicks in the eggs. Since she's going to need to brood for 5 weeks total, it is important to do everything to encourage her to remain broody. Is there any way to get the chick delivery moved up 1-2 weeks?? Some hatcheries will try to rearrange things if you call and explain the broody hen situation.

 

[southernmomma]

Oh dear, that's me, causing trouble again!!

Aren't you the person who posted a few week back on the Buckeye thread that you were considering Buckeyes for meat, another breed for eggs (I'm remembering Speckled Sussex, but that might be wrong, probably thinking that because that's what I have), and game hens for brooding? You had this wonderful homestead plan that was all pre-planned and I was so impressed with it.

As much as I love my Red Dorkings, and as much as I want to start breeding them to the SOP to help improve the quality of this rare breed, I don't think I would get them as my only breed if I were setting up the homestead that you're planning (I hope you're the same person, or this isn't going to make any sense). When I said that Dorkings have all the qualities that you're looking for (in the above quote), I meant in reference to being reliably broody, being excellent mothers, and having excellent foraging abilities. Essentially, all the qualities you were mentioning that you wanted for your broodies (probably 2-3 quotes ago). But in regards to egg production, they aren't one of the best dual purpose breeds for that because they brood so often, so their yearly egg count is much less than other dual purpose breeds, unless you spend a lot of time repeatedly breaking their broods. And their meat is some of the best out there, but they are barely ready to process at six months old, and nine months is better.

So from a specialized brooding point of view, or a hobby breeder point of view, or from a "I'd like a few pet hens that free range and forage well" point of view, they're the best (ok, maybe I'm a little prejudiced here -- some other breeds are great too). But from a production homestead point of view, they're probably not the best for all three jobs of brooding, egg production, and meat production. I honestly like your first plan of having three different breeds for three different jobs better than having one breed do it all.

I love that you're researching everything so much before you jump in, but try not to get yourself set on any breed until you try at least 5-10 of them. You may absolutely love each breed you chose, or you may find that one of them isn't right for you. I spent 3 years looking for my Barnevelders. Everything I read about them made me think they were the perfect breed for me. But once I got them I was disappointed (sorry Barnevelder lovers, if there's any of you reading this). They're not a horrible bird, but they just didn't meet my expectations, and don't thrive as well as other breeds under my management style. I tried 2 different lines, and both had different disappointments, so I've slaughtered all the cockerels, and will likely slaughter most of the hens after they finish laying this year. The Dorkings, on the other hand, I knew nothing about but had them sent to me when a supplier was unable to fill my order for Buckeyes. I fell in love with them immediately, and have been totally enthralled ever since. I'm not saying that you should just randomly pick breeds out of a catalog, as the Dorking substitution had an equal chance of going horribly wrong. But just be sure to keep an open mind, even after you've made up your mind, because you may decide to change your mind after you've worked with the breed(s) you choose.

Please keep posting about your homestead plans, and what decisions you're making regarding your birds. I love reading about it.

I probably AM that person but I'm not considering having 3 breeds for 3 purposes but was looking at Doms or Buckeyes or Sp. Sussex--or's not and's

I have been all over the map really and it's a little discouraging actually! Broody hens have always been part of my plan as well as sloooow food (the plan being to hatch in the spring and process in the fall) hence my piqued curiosity in the Dorking. I do understand the breed I begin with may not be the breed I have in 20 years but I wish not to take the decision lightly or choose on a passing whim. Input like your is invaluable and I wish we could sit and drink coffee for a chat rather than hijack this thread I will continue to read and learn!

Thanks,
M

 

[Mrs Hutcherson]

Should I take my broody off her nest? She hasn't gotten off in 4 or 5 days. She's been picking at the bowl of feed I put in her nest but hasn't eaten much or gotten up that I know of...

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote: Oops, totally misunderstood your plan. I'll PM you so we can talk further.

 

[daniellea2912]

I moved her today only to weigh her (since I had her off anyway I let her eat and drink while off etc) and she kept a close eye in the general direction of the nest box the whole time and got back in the box within about 5-10 seconds of me setting her back up by the box.

I am going to call Meyer tomorrow but I'm unsure if they will have my chicks available for me to pick up early as they are sold out of most of most of them from looking at their website... Hopefully it will work out though. I also contacted a BYC member I was going to get 2 ccl's from to see if I could get them early to give to her but I haven't heard back yet.
She is sitting on 2 ceramic eggs right now, but I may buy 2 more for her. There is a curtain covering most of the nestbox opening and it's pretty quiet during the day in there as my other hens spend most of their time outside as long as the weather is bearable.
She seems to be doing pretty well as of now, but I am prepared for her to hop off before the chicks get here or maybe not accept them, it is her first time going broody after all... I have supplies for a brooder for the lil chicks if that happens!

 

[Sydney Acres]

Should I take my broody off her nest? She hasn't gotten off in 4 or 5 days. She's been picking at the bowl of feed I put in her nest but hasn't eaten much or gotten up that I know of...

Theoretically not, as nature is set up for hens to brood for long periods of time with very little movement or food. I take mine off because they are very stubborn brooders that are very tame, and I have some concerns about such big birds (Dorkings) not moving around enough. But it's not right for every situation, and there's a huge risk that some birds will be quite stressed by pulling them off the nest, or that they will stop brooding. If you read through my previous posts you will see that I remove them in a very specific way and monitor them very closely while they're off the nest.

If she's off in a private area, have you checked the area for broody poo? Often times people think that broodies haven't left the nest, but when they look closely there is broody poo nearby. If there's broody poo in the nest, you need to take her off and clean up the eggs. The general consensus is that eggs should be gently wiped clean with bedding material or a dry cloth, but not with water, and that it's better to leave a little bit of debris on the eggs than clean them thoroughly with water, which will wash off the protective bloom on the shell.

If she's very tame, if she likes being handled, if she's a breed that holds her brood well, if she's in a private area where the nest won't be disturbed while she's gone, if you can cover the eggs to keep them warm, if you know her well enough to really believe that she will tolerate it well and you really think it is necessary, and you're willing to take the risk that she will quit brooding, then it might be the right thing to do in your case. But don't do it if you have any concerns, or you're not willing to take the risk. I've posted a lot of detail about how I take broodies off the nest on this thread in the last few weeks, so you can read them and decide.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote:
It's so important to be set up ahead of time. The chicks can get quite cold if you have to run to the store for a heat lamp or other supplies.

 

[daniellea2912]

It's so important to be set up ahead of time.  The chicks can get quite cold if you have to run to the store for a heat lamp or other supplies.

Agreed! I will probably have the brooder set up and the heat plate warming while I'm driving to the hatchery just so I know it's ready and warm just in case