Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[ochochicas]

I've never once seen my broodies turn their eggs and they've hatched. I don't think they like to do stuff when we are watching. You can turn them if you want, I can't see it doing any harm. But I would just leave her to it

You are both right, she is taking good care of the eggs. Today when I took her out there was an egg missing. I looked all over for it and couldn't find it anywhere. Then I discovered that she had it tucked under the wing and when I moved the hen the egg went with her.

I'm 99.9% certain she is not leaving the next to eat or anything else. Her food has not been touched all week, and there is no poo anywhere. The other key sign is that when she goes back to the coop she always goes into her original nest box where she first went broody. I had to move her since the other next box isn't sufficient for hatching eggs. Today when she went back she was standing on the edge of the wrong box looking all mad because her eggs weren't there. I put her on the ramp to her new next and she went in. I think she's finally starting to get it.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Okay I'm done playing move the chicks. If RIR momma isn't content with her new chicks and is willing to let the silky take them over, I'm not going to intervene. I'll give any available broodies those chicks next week, even if that means the Maran gets all eight.

 

[bobbieschicks]

You are both right, she is taking good care of the eggs.  Today when I took her out there was an egg missing.  I looked all over for it and couldn't find it anywhere.  Then I discovered that she had it tucked under the wing and when I moved the hen the egg went with her.  

I'm 99.9% certain she is not leaving the next to eat or anything else.  Her food has not been touched all week, and there is no poo anywhere.  The other key sign is that when she goes back to the coop she always goes into her original nest box where she first went broody.  I had to move her since the other next box isn't sufficient for hatching eggs.  Today when she went back she was standing on the edge of the wrong box looking all mad because her eggs weren't there.  I put her on the ramp to her new next and she went in.  I think she's finally starting to get it.  

I sometimes toss the sitting broodies out when I clean out the coop in the morning. That way they get food & drink and then return to sit. But that means I also have to play move them around games because other layers will use their nests while they are off.

Broodies are so much fun to watch with their chicks.

 

[Johnn]

The partridge silky keeps trying to steal the chicks. Lol. I keep checking on them and this morning I caught momma RIR in the nest box and the 3 chicks under the silky on the floor! I moved the chicks up, moved the silky over, moved the chicks back down and momma RIR moved down too. Then I shifted silky to the box above them with eggs. Thankfully momma RIR is now settled back down on the floor with all three chicks under her and the silky is happy for now with eggs again. Whew!

Everyone stay where you belong!

Aww! At least you know youve got a back up if anything went wrong! Hopefully this means she will accept your shipped chicks!

 

[Johnn]

Okay I'm done playing move the chicks. If RIR momma isn't content with her new chicks and is willing to let the silky take them over, I'm not going to intervene. I'll give any available broodies those chicks next week, even if that means the Maran gets all eight.

Can you not separate? Or give the silkie one and see if she will settle with it. Guess its down to the pecking order now :/

 

[bobbieschicks]

Sorry I didn't get back here for over a week! We have 5 baby chicks and I'm so excited about it! Even though they're mixed breed, BCM and Wheaten Marans (roo) and they'll just (hopefully) be egg layers, we're super happy! I didn't mean to let her go broody, and I didn't expect anything, although it was really hard NOT to count my chickens before they hatched (literally!)  So, now we have 5 new additions and the super-protective mamma, she's a great hen, I'm so glad to have her! 
      Since now I know she's such a good brooder and has good characteristics of the BCM hen, I may get a BCM roo and breed them on purpose. I'd like to get some olive eggers, as I have two araucanas and I'm hoping that crossing them will produce a decent looking green egg, which would be a nice marketing trick, for our local farmers market and our farm stand.  Anyone else doing this?

I've got an order of four olive eggers arriving next week. I'm looking forward to green eggs.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Can you not separate? Or give the silkie one and see if she will settle with it. Guess its down to the pecking order now :/

That silky would gladly take over those chicks but I need some warm broodies for my 8 chicks due next weds.

 

[Johnn]

That silky would gladly take over those chicks but I need some warm broodies for my 8 chicks due next weds.

Can you not move the RIR and the chicks somewhere else??

 

[bobbieschicks]

Can you not move the RIR and the chicks somewhere else??

No. I'll just let them play out their melodrama. As long as someone takes care of the chicks I don't care who does it.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Everybody's broodies are different, but mine would never tolerate being around other broodies. They're fine with non-brooding birds, but the moment two broodies are within sight of each other there's a fight.

One of my broodies has 2 chicks that are 24 days old, and they're old enough that they're living all day in a fenced-off area in the garden that's about 36 X 10 feet. That temporary fence is about 3 feet tall, and there's plenty to do in there so they stay put (so far). They'll be joining the main free range flock when they're big enough to no longer be a cat treat. My second broody has 13 chicks that are 14 days old. They've been living in the broody run in the barn, and yesterday I set up an outdoor run on grass for them. The temporary run is about 4 feet wide and 100 feet long, and uses the permanent garden fence as one of its sides. It is not anywhere near the first broody's run (about 75 feet away), but it is within sight. I needed to weight and evaluate and adjust the leg bands on all the chicks, which was difficult with mom in the pen, so I just did the first five chicks and took them plus mom out to the temporary run, then went back to the barn to work with the other 8 chicks. I was in the barn about 25-30 minutes, and when I came out with the other 8 chicks I found the two broodies fighting through the fence. Luckily none of the chicks were injured, but broody #1 had flown over her 3 foot fence and was trying to steal some of the 14 day old chicks, and broody #2 wasn't going to tolerate that. Luckily the chicks couldn't get through the fence, and the broodies couldn't seriously injure themselves, but they were totally exhausted and their faces were really bloodied.

So all my broodies are kept separate, starting on day one of the brood. It would be so nice to have communal brooding, but that just isn't going to happen with my overprotective girls.