Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[fisherlady]

Thank you so much for replying! I wonder if I should move the mama hens to their own little places like a dog kennel or pen? They are first time brooders so I don't know if it will throw them off. I did move one hen to another nest when she went broody and climbed in with the first hen and started stealing her eggs. I moved her to another nest box with eggs I had saved up and she did just fine. I just didn't think it all the way through or I would have moved her to a separate place all together when they first went broody.

The best time to try to move them is while they are still on 'fake' eggs, though even if on the real eggs you can try moving them but expect to possibly need to move them back if they freak. It is simpler when they are segregated somehow from the other layers but some hens just don't tolerate being separated.

 

[joyfulkeeper]

Set Friday, Day 1 Saturday is the way I do it...first 24 hours is day 1.

Candle at 5 days then 10 days. (3 days is often too early to see anything well, by 7 days you often are past the clear stage at 3 days).

At 5 days, you should see a small "peanut" in the middle and a tree branch of veins coming out from 2 ends.

At day 10, you'll see a large dark blob and air cell at one end...unless you purchase good candling equipment...I just use a dollar store LED and my hand cupped around the egg holding it so I can candle looking down on it with the light shining from below. Candle in a dark room or by the coop at night.

Since you mention boys are involved, here's a fun embryo development video I like to share with the kids I teach, as well as a 4H unit that really makes this a fun family educational adventure.

4H unit (free for download) http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/4h/4-H1500theincredibleegg.pdf

And of course a good candling chart (I never see the clarity they get in this chart as I use inexpensive equipment):
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...g-candling-pics-progression-though-incubation

And signs of 'quitters"
http://animalscience.ucdavis.edu/avian/pfs32.htm

Have fun!
Lady of McCamley

Thanks for the great links for the kids.
Tomorrow is day 5 so we will be candling for the first time. I can't wait to see the magical transformation starting!

 

[help4me]

Hi,

Please forgive me if this has already been addressed, and if so, could someone send me to the proper link this thread is so long. I have a very broody Lavender Orpington. I will try to keep this whole story short.

My question is, she has gone broody twice in the last 3 or 4 months. The first time I let her run her course even though she was NOT sitting on anything. Silly Collette. The second time I stopped her after a few days when I realized she was broody again. (hey she is our only egg layer) So, every since she started laying again we have been collecting and rotating out her eggs to get some for her to actually sit on. (We only have one hen and one rooster.) So, now that we decided that we would actually let her try to hatch some, today I noticed she just started moulting. This is her first moult she will be 1 on May17TH. If she does go broody again, should we let her sit on some eggs while she is moulting? I don't know if molting is stressful for them, or just an ugly time for them.

If it is stressful I don't want to stress her any more, but if she herself puts herself in broody mode, then would it be harmful to grant her her wishes?

 

[Sydney Acres]

Hi,

Please forgive me if this has already been addressed, and if so, could someone send me to the proper link this thread is so long. I have a very broody Lavender Orpington. I will try to keep this whole story short.

My question is, she has gone broody twice in the last 3 or 4 months. The first time I let her run her course even though she was NOT sitting on anything. Silly Collette. The second time I stopped her after a few days when I realized she was broody again. (hey she is our only egg layer) So, every since she started laying again we have been collecting and rotating out her eggs to get some for her to actually sit on. (We only have one hen and one rooster.) So, now that we decided that we would actually let her try to hatch some, today I noticed she just started molting. This is her first molt she will be 1 on May17TH. If she does go broody again, should we let her sit on some eggs while she is molting? I don't know if molting is stressful for them, or just an ugly time for them.

If it is stressful I don't want to stress her any more, but if she herself puts herself in broody mode, then would it be harmful to grant her her wishes?

This is an unusual time of year for birds to molt. Being that she is only one year old and this is her first molt, she may not have her timing and hormones balanced right, and she'll go on a normal schedule next year. If you had lights in her coop over the winter, than that can get their cycles unpaired from the seasons, and they can molt at unusual times of the year. Or there may be something else going on, and this may not be a normal molt.

Normally a molt is a time of rejuvenation, where their reproductive cycle hits reset. So they stop laying, and they don't brood, and they use a lot of energy to produce new feathers. So she shouldn't (doesn't mean that she won't, but she shouldn't) try to brood while she's molting. If she does try both at the same time, I personally would try to break her brood. It's too much metabolic and hormonal stress for a hen to do both at once, IMO. Also, she need excellent plumage to cover eggs properly and keep them warm, and she won't have that in a hard molt.

Please post again if she does try to brood while molting, or if you need help trying to break her brood.

 

[help4me]

Thank you for the quick reply. Hmm, now I am worried. I know nothing about moulting, (all this chicken business is new to me,) I figured she was right on time as far as age goes. Maybe she is not moulting? Not sure what I should be looking for as far as moulting or not. I noticed it only because I have in the past two days taken a lot of pictures. We only have the two which hatched out together and he has never been rough with her, it's not looking like breeding feather loss. They recently rolled in some old sand that use to be the sand box, could it be mites, or fleas? Seems kind of excessive in just one day plus Ricky looks fine. What little pictures I have seen of moulting, looked like what she has. Well, I certainly have some more research to do to find out what is going on, I won't put any eggs under her even if she does go broody. Thank you again.

 

[MargaretYakoda]

Here's a photo of some chick I just met.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Thank you for the quick reply. Hmm, now I am worried. I know nothing about molting, (all this chicken business is new to me,) I figured she was right on time as far as age goes. Maybe she is not molting? Not sure what I should be looking for as far as molting or not. I noticed it only because I have in the past two days taken a lot of pictures. We only have the two which hatched out together and he has never been rough with her, it's not looking like breeding feather loss. They recently rolled in some old sand that use to be the sand box, could it be mites, or fleas? Seems kind of excessive in just one day plus Ricky looks fine. What little pictures I have seen of molting, looked like what she has. Well, I certainly have some more research to do to find out what is going on, I won't put any eggs under her even if she does go broody. Thank you again.

Can you post some pictures of her from different angles? Is she losing a lot of feathers everywhere, or a lot of feathers from only one place? Are there any large bald spots, and if so, where? Somewhere on this site is an "October molting" contest, where people post pictures of their chcken's worst looking molt. Molts can get quite extensive, but don't always. Sometimes it's more subtle. The most important thing is to monitor her to make sure she is doing well and continuing to eat. I like to give some extra protein treats, such as fish or mealworms. Also, it's important to check for mites and wounds regularly, especially if there's any unexpected feather loss. Was she under lights during the winter, or did she only see natural sunlight?

 

[LisaLouHoo]

Here's a photo of some chick I just met.

Cute picture, about as cute as what you said.

 

[help4me]

Thank you for your help. Here is some info I found, I guess she would still be considered a pullet as she is not yet 1? I don't really remember when she started laying, (how can that be, we were so excited!) I must start writing things down. She started laying normal time for her breed and has laid constant since she started, almost one a day, even in the winter, when not broody.

Yes, there was a light on in the coop. Seems like according to this she is right on schedule? I tried to get pictures of her but the weather is nasty and rainy, I can't get a good shot. The loss is on her shoulders/where the wings start, at the area of where the tail starts and on her head. No way she is pulling them out herself, as most of the areas she would not be able to reach. I don't think it is Ricky, as her head and tail area are not the area of over mating, at least I don't think so. He has always been very good to her and I just don't think that could be from mating as she was not like this just two days ago.( I didn't really check her out yesterday as again the weather was terrible.) It just seems like way to many for over mating in only two days time.


Here is what I found.



The pullet

The chick goes through one complete and three partial moults during its growth to point of lay, after which the mature bird normally undergoes one complete moult a year, usually in autumn although this depends on the time of the year at which the bird commenced laying. Generally complete moulting occurs from 1-6 weeks and partial moulting at 7-9 weeks, 12-16 weeks and 20-22 weeks, and during this latter moult the stiff tail feathers are grown.
The laying hen

Natural moulting usually begins sometime during March-April and should be completed by July when egg production recommences. The three main factors which bring about moulting are:

• physical exhaustion and fatigue
• completion of the laying cycle. Birds only lay eggs for a certain period of time
• reduction of day length, resulting in reduced feeding time, and consequent loss of body weight.

Eleven months continuous production is expected from pullets hatched in season, so that if a flock of pullets commenced laying in March at six months of age, they should continue laying until the following February, although the odd bird may moult after laying for a few weeks. These few birds however should begin laying again after June 22 (the shortest day of the year) and continue in production until the following autumn.

Pullets coming into lay in June should lay until the following April thereby giving eleven months continuous egg production without the aid of artificial light. Pullets coming into lay in spring (August) should lay well into April (9 months) but unless artificial lighting is provided, most of them will moult during May and June.

 

[help4me]

I apologize to all in this thread as I think I posted in the wrong one. I thought I would be joining in this, but until I figure out what is going on with Collette I won't be giving her any eggs to hatch. I don't mean to ignore all the wonderful pictures of the mommas and babies, they are priceless. If I knew how to move this to it's proper place I would. Someday, I will be in the right thread at the right time.

As my 11 year old daughter said as we looked through the pictures "Oh they melt my heart."