Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[bumpercarr]

The chicks will be 5 weeks tomorrow & I confirmed that the mama hen is laying. How strange! I hope she teaches the chicks how to roost before leaving them. I already have 1 BIG hen that sleeps in the nestbox, I certainly don't want another 7 doing it!

Kim

Looks like mine is leaving her three week old chick....definitely hasn't learned to roost yet. Roosting seems to be an instinctive thing. I have 14 that I raised in the brooder and they all roost at 8 weeks old. Most of my adults don't roost....go figure.

 

[Pyxis]

I've got another one now! Another BO, this one is Penny, my first BO hen. She's a good mother and will be getting some bantam eggs to hatch for me. I just have to figure out where the heck I'm going to put her. Usually it would be in a large dog crate in the corner of the coop but I have broody goose there who won't quit even though she has nothing to hatch and wouldn't take the goslings I tried to give her. I'm considering sticking her in the cemani coop. They won't bother her much if I do. I'd rather find a way to keep her in her own coop if I can, though.

 

[vpatt]

I thought Jessica was acting weird yesterday evening and sure enough......today i found an egg she had laid and she went to roost this evening without her babies. They are only 3 weeks old! I was able to catch them and they are in the pet carrier right now. It is supposed to be down to sixty degrees tonight and i brought them inside the house in case it gets colder. There are three of them. I guess there will be no more hatching for Miss Jessica! I was thinking of putting them in the pen with the cochins tomorrow.....but i think they can get thru the wire and i am not sure the cochins would accept them as they have 4 babies of their own now. If it is in the fifty to sixty degree range will they be ok outside at 3 weeks old? Should i take them out and put them by her on the roost? They have quieted down now in the tv room where i am.

 

[fisherlady]

I thought Jessica was acting weird yesterday evening and sure enough......today i found an egg she had laid and she went to roost this evening without her babies. They are only 3 weeks old! I was able to catch them and they are in the pet carrier right now. It is supposed to be down to sixty degrees tonight and i brought them inside the house in case it gets colder. There are three of them. I guess there will be no more hatching for Miss Jessica! I was thinking of putting them in the pen with the cochins tomorrow.....but i think they can get thru the wire and i am not sure the cochins would accept them as they have 4 babies of their own now. If it is in the fifty to sixty degree range will they be ok outside at 3 weeks old? Should i take them out and put them by her on the roost? They have quieted down now in the tv room where i am.

We have a hen who just tonight took her 16 day old chicks onto the roost for the first time... she is up there now snuggled with them. I would try placing them with her to see if they will stay. But definitely will need a plan B if she rejects them again in the morning. Sometimes hens want to 'rejoin' in the roosting/social life of the coop but they still act like 'mama' during the day. Worth a try if you have the time to watch for what develops in the morning.

 

[vpatt]

We have a hen who just tonight took her 16 day old chicks onto the roost for the first time... she is up there now snuggled with them. I would try placing them with her to see if they will stay.  But definitely will need a plan B if she rejects them again in the morning. Sometimes hens want to 'rejoin' in the roosting/social life of the coop but they still act like 'mama' during the day.  Worth a try if you have the time to watch for what develops in the morning.

Thank you.

 

[kilby]

I have had 3 of 3 chicks hatch and live last year and what I did was follow the 95 F minus 5 degrees a week method for them and my mail order day old chicks. So at 3 weeks we are talking 80F and 60 is way too cold. I imagine they are too big to sleep with Ma so you need a ceramic bulb to keep them warm and a big enough space so they can get away from it when it gets too hot for them. Use a min - max thermometer to judge the range and keep them inside of course. When they have a body of feathers not down they can go out during the day but I don't know what temp it was outside when I did that. Probably 75-80 F. Could be less for you. Good chick raising to you.

 

[kilby]

Oh and yes I have two broody hens sitting right now. One is a Partridge Chantecler. Very broody and not on the list but then again she is a Canadian Breed. Other is a copper moran americauna mix. The Americauna mother last year is broody to some extent this year and the other copper moran mix was also broody till I got her to go. I am still new to the hatching thing so love this thread. Is it normal for 4 hens of 11 to go broody together? I thought maybe because it is spring and the Roo's have been very busy. so many QQQQQs hahaha
Thank you.

 

[Faraday40]

I thought Jessica was acting weird yesterday evening and sure enough......today i found an egg she had laid and she went to roost this evening without her babies. They are only 3 weeks old! I was able to catch them and they are in the pet carrier right now. It is supposed to be down to sixty degrees tonight and i brought them inside the house in case it gets colder. There are three of them. I guess there will be no more hatching for Miss Jessica! I was thinking of putting them in the pen with the cochins tomorrow.....but i think they can get thru the wire and i am not sure the cochins would accept them as they have 4 babies of their own now. If it is in the fifty to sixty degree range will they be ok outside at 3 weeks old? Should i take them out and put them by her on the roost? They have quieted down now in the tv room where i am.

Mine's been doing the same thing for the past 3 days/nights. (3 eggs in 3 days) The chicks turned 5 weeks old yesterday. They've been spending the night in the nest box while mama's up on the roost. I just squeezed them next to mom & will check on them in about an hour. Funny thing is that during the day, I see all the chicks playing on the roosts while mama's laying her egg. They just don't realize they can sleep up there. Let's hope they don't fall off. I'll check on them in about an hour.

 

[kilby]

VPATT If it is in the fifty to sixty degree range will they be ok outside at 3 weeks old? Should i take them out and put them by her on the roost?

Emphatic No. Did not quote you on my previous post but I was trying to get a message to you. See above please.

 

[kilby]

Mine's been doing the same thing for the past 3 days/nights. (3 eggs in 3 days) The chicks turned 5 weeks old yesterday. They've been spending the night in the nest box while mama's up on the roost. I just squeezed them next to mom & will check on them in about an hour. Funny thing is that during the day, I see all the chicks playing on the roosts while mama's laying her egg. They just don't realize they can sleep up there. Let's hope they don't fall off. I'll check on them in about an hour.

Falling is not an option. Birds getting injuries while young can get marek's later. I forget where I saw it but rough handling,mishaps, temp and stress can reverse a marek's vaccine. If you don't vaccinate don't matter because they pick up the immunity from the flock and it can get reversed. They are very fragile even with green limbs. Also, at 3 weeks 80 F is the lowest they should have to encounter. Don't worry they will be grown up before you know it and Mom can start teaching them survival skills later. Lot's of time for that. So keep them warm so they can live to learn it.