Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[graciesioix]

I didn't date any eggs or check for temp , just let nature take it's corse. I've had one more hatch but I don't know how well she is doing she is just crying and stays on her back .mama seems to be ignoring her.

 

[TGRREZ]

I didn't date any eggs or check for temp , just let nature take it's corse. I've had one more hatch but I don't know how well she is doing she is just crying and stays on her back .mama seems to be ignoring her.

Flip the chick over. Did you give your broody the eggs at the same time or did you add more a few days later?

 

[graciesioix]

Ok i flipped her over she's doing a bit better thanks
Well .. I didn't add any. I'm actually not certain how long she had been sitting on eggs in the coop. I moved her the third day I knew it was too hot and she was in danger. I just kept all the eggs she was on already .All of my hens like to sit on eggs and lay in the same two boxes so these aren't even all her eggs., we noticed Elsa was a bit more serious because she didn't go to bed with the other girls one night when my daughter went to let the free grazers in before dark.

 

[TGRREZ]

Ok i flipped her over she's doing a bit better thanks
Well .. I didn't add any. I'm actually not certain how long she had been sitting on eggs in the coop. I moved her the third day I knew it was too hot and she was in danger. I just kept all the eggs she was on already .All of my hens like to sit on eggs and lay in the same two boxes so these aren't even all her eggs., we noticed Elsa was a bit more serious because she didn't go to bed with the other girls one night when my daughter went to let the free grazers in before dark.

Well, if she is already taking care of the other chicks and not setting on the remailing eggs anymore, would be a good time to remove them and candle, she if they are even alive. You might end up having to match them in the house if they are not ready right now. I had 4 go broody at once and 1 gave up about halfway and I pit her eggs under the brooder heat lamp in my spare bedroom, in a box with bedding and they all hatched except 1.

 

[TGRREZ]

Man, so many typos..u might have to hatch the remaining inside

 

[coelurajry]

**UPDATE**
Hi All,

One of the eggs the broody hen abandoned (and I opened the end of) has hatched in my incubator! This is from a Lemon-Blue LF Cochin Rooster and a blue LF Cochin hen. It looks almost silvery right now, can't wait for it to dry off/get fluffy so I can see what color it is. Here's a picture...

 

[mamalaoshi]

**UPDATE**
Hi All,

One of the eggs the broody hen abandoned (and I opened the end of) has hatched in my incubator! This is from a Lemon-Blue LF Cochin Rooster and a blue LF Cochin hen. It looks almost silvery right now, can't wait for it to dry off/get fluffy so I can see what color it is.

Here's a picture...

So cute! Congratulations! I'm glad at least one made it. Hopefully you have more hatch too.

 

[mamalaoshi]

I have a hen who started strong broodiness a few days ago. (Will NOT leave the nest now matter how often we remove her!) DD's project is due July 20th, so we really don't have the time to let her incubate a 3rd trial for us. ......Also do not have fresh fertile eggs.

I'm thinking of slipping a few incubator eggs under her. They're due to hatch next Wed. Would a proven broody have a problem with eggs hatching too quickly? What's the best way to allow 2 broody's to raise chicks at the same time in the same flock? (Should I keep them apart to bond with chicks for a few days?)

Last year we had two hens sitting on some eggs that when we candled at the end of two weeks ended up not being fertile (we ate daddy rooster a little too soon, it turned out.) We also had a small batch of eggs in the incubator at the same time. So we slipped those under the mommies and only two hatched under one mom. So we stole one of her babies that night and slipped it under the other hen. In the morning the two moms and the two babies were out scratching around in their run. Each chick would run to their mom if they were scared or to sleep but otherwise they hung out together in a big happy family.

 

[chickens galore]

Hi all my lavender wyandotte went broody in her breeding pen she is one of a trio, tried to break her but she was having none of it,I gave her some silkie eggs I had on day 14 in the incubator, she hatched 5 out of the 6, the other piped but she kicked it out, she took the babies out yesterday on day 3,I had to put her and the chicks in last night after dark as mum kept trying but the chicks didn't follow but instead just ran under the coop, she drew blood, now today she has them out again if I have to take them in tonight I will be wearing thick gloves

she went in by herself but left one chick outside, i didnt realize when i went to close up the coop, so one chick died, then last night she left all the chicks outside I managed to catch them all and gave them back to her,she cuddled them back under her, there is no reason the chicks shouldnt be able to get in as the coop is low on the floor, ive kept them all in today and will do for a few days with food and water, the trouble is it means locking the other pair out until dark fall, I thought broodies were easier, i worry more over them than the ones in my utility room

 

[mamalaoshi]

she went in by herself but left one chick outside, i didnt realize when i went to close up the coop, so one chick died, then last night she left all the chicks outside I managed to catch them all and gave them back to her,she cuddled them back under her, there is no reason the chicks shouldnt be able to get in as the coop is low on the floor, ive kept them all in today and will do for a few days with food and water, the trouble is it means locking the other pair out until dark fall, I thought broodies were easier, i worry more over them than the ones in my utility room

I think they are way easier if they are good mommies as well as good brooders. I only have a couple of years experience but my mommies have always taken really good care of their chicks and the only time I lost a baby chicken was when two got eaten by an opposum that snuck into the coop one night. I would recommend making a small box out of hardware cloth and zipties and put it in a section of your coop to keep them together inside for a few more days and then your other chickens can come and go as they want. Just use wire snippers to cut the mesh in the shape of a five sided box, then bend the sides and ziptie them together. It wouldn't protect them from a predator but it works fine for keeping a mommy and babies contained. If the mom is determined to get out, she can, but then you can just temporarily staple two or three sides of the box to the coop floor and cut a small flap somewhere to reach in to add food and water. I'm sure there are more elegant solutions but this is a twenty minute fix and only needs to last a few days.