Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[Lady of McCamley]

Sounds like you are well on the way to a busy spring! Fingers crossed that their hatches go well!

Thank you fisherlady

LofMc

 

[Kjcramp]

My huge Red Ranger hen and one WL hatched about 9 chicks combined last year. They went broody in the nest boxes, then I moved them to their own side of the coop (which is small) and separated with chicken wire fencing. They were awesome! The chicks were protected by their mamas, they grew up next to the rest of the flock - about 20 in all, and really had no problem integrating when it was time. While they were out free-ranging, the mamas kept them in tow and our black lab followed them around like a grand nanny! They are all grown now and laying. I'd say it was the best hatching/raising experience I've ever had! The hens did all the work!

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

Mama and babies doing well in their broody chambers!

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Rosie is very happily sitting on 6 Cream Legbar eggs.

Vivi is a bit frustrated as I put up the dividing screen to separate her out from Rosie to make sure Rosie got settled on the new, purchased (not free), eggs. (Rosie didn't bat an eye, being the experienced broody she is).

Sweet little Vivi keeps trying to sit in the nest on Rosie, generally on Rosie's head. Vivi has never hatched anything, being a young just laying pullet, so her antics could prove fatal to new chicks or development of eggs if she interrupts Rosie at the wrong times. I'll keep watching her to see if she will settle into patterns showing she will be a helpful auntie with the brooding or is merely a distraction. I created a nice nest for Vivi, with dud eggs, to see if I can't entice her to do her own thing instead of hoarding in on Rosie.

We'll see what she does. If she's a good girl and settles into a good brood, I'll give her some of my backyard mix eggs so she can try her first hatch.

Olive is sitting so pretty...one week to go for Olive.

The count down begins for Rosie

LofMc

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Now a question for the experienced broody hen raisers.....those who regularly hatch chicks with brooding hens....
@fisherlady
@PD-Riverman

...and any others who have had experience and would like to answer:

Have you ever, or do you regularly, wash/sanitize your fertile eggs before setting with a broody?

If so why? If so how? What has been your results?

Sadly my pre-arranged, highly desired, purchased eggs came in less than ideal shape....very dirty. (Heavy mud smears, likely some fecal as well).

As they were a good deal on a very desired breed I'd had trouble finding, and we'd arranged a meet up, with the breeder driving a substantial distance, I purchased the eggs anyway.

I had done some googling the night before just in case with a hunch the eggs could be dirty after our incredibly rainy winter/spring and dealing with a new breeder (who is more on the side than a regular business).

Yes. By golly, this is a HUGE controversy, I know, I did the BYC search as well as others. To wash or not wash before setting to hatch. So I know there are going to be opinions on both sides (so let's keep it helpful and instructional).

Generally the wash crowd is using incubators, and the "big boy" hatcheries wash/sanitize and place in sterile incubators to get the nearly 100% success rates without risk of omphalitis and other infections common to hatching chicks in dirty environments.

But what about us with broodies? They are hardly sterile. (Which was the breeder's reasoning for not worrying about her eggs being dirty...they were going under a broody).

But what about the safety to the broody with eggs from another farm?

So, getting into the matter, I know the importance of the cuticle (aka bloom) on the egg and how that protects the developing chick inside from invading bacteria in what can only be considered an unclean environment (the backside of a hen sitting in a functioning coop).

Normally I do not wash my eggs but place them directly under my broody hens for that reason.

BUT my eggs, are pretty clean as I make effort to keep my nest boxes clean and provide shavings in the paths up to the coop for the constant mud that is Oregon. (I toss those that are really encrusted or filthy.)

When I've sold fertile eggs, I made sure they were the cleanest and freshest I had (and my purchasers reported 80 to 90 percent hatch rates of healthy chicks and healthy broodies).

While fertile eggs do not protect against passing MG to the flock (as it is passed from mother to chick), hatching fertile eggs is one of the safest ways to add new birds and different breeds to a flock.

BUT...what if the breeder doesn't have the same standards as you do? And you find out AFTER pre-arranged payment/pickup or mail receipt?

What about those microscopic contaminants from their farm...viruses, coccidia, mites?

I've pondered about the risk to my hens of placing eggs from another farm under them.

So...what are your thoughts? What are your experiences?

Thank you to all who answer.

LofMc

PS: I decided to wash the dirty eggs under warm (but not hot) water...about 105 degrees, with gentle finger rubbing to rid the deep mud, then air dried. 4 needed cleaning, 2 were okay, so I did not wash. (Somewhat of a control, though not scientific). We'll see what happens.

 

[fisherlady]

@Lady of McCamley

I don't wash mine, with a clean nest and an area for the hen to get out and relieve herself and dust bath I just let nature take its course...but with that being said,... the egg sources I have used have given me reasonably clean eggs to work with, and when collecting our own we are picky about which we use, so they are normally pretty clean, though we have placed eggs with smears on them to hatch with no obviously poor results.
I will say that any which have been dirty have been allowed to dry completely and been brushed off with a paper towel prior to being set.

I understand your concern for biosecurity also... for that reason I would at minimum make sure they are dry and heavier contamination rubbed off prior to giving it to the broody, and would change out bedding after the first week or so if you can catch her off of the nest, so anything which has gotten onto the nesting material is thrown out. I have changed out nests on our broodies a few times for various reasons with the hen not seeming to care that her nest was fluffier when she got back from her daily break.

I understand the importance of the hatching eggs, and your reasoning for washing them...I think with the heavier contamination I would have done the same. I can't speak to the safety or effectiveness of any of the egg washes since I have no experience with them.

 

[jenniferlamar70]

Now a question for the experienced broody hen raisers.....those who regularly hatch chicks with brooding hens....
@fisherlady

@PD-Riverman


...and any others who have had experience and would like to answer:

[COLOR=B22222]Have you ever, or do you regularly, wash/sanitize your fertile eggs before setting with a broody? [/COLOR]

[COLOR=B22222]If so why? If so how? What has been your results?[/COLOR]

Sadly my pre-arranged, highly desired, purchased eggs came in less than ideal shape....very dirty. (Heavy mud smears, likely some fecal as well).

As they were a good deal on a very desired breed I'd had trouble finding, and we'd arranged a meet up, with the breeder driving a substantial distance, I purchased the eggs anyway.

I had done some googling the night before just in case with a hunch the eggs could be dirty after our incredibly rainy winter/spring and dealing with a new breeder (who is more on the side than a regular business).

Yes. By golly, this is a HUGE controversy, I know, I did the BYC search as well as others. To wash or not wash before setting to hatch. So I know there are going to be opinions on both sides (so let's keep it helpful and instructional).

Generally the wash crowd is using incubators, and the "big boy" hatcheries wash/sanitize and place in sterile incubators to get the nearly 100% success rates without risk of omphalitis and other infections common to hatching chicks in dirty environments.

But what about us with broodies?  They are hardly sterile. (Which was the breeder's reasoning for not worrying about her eggs being dirty...they were going under a broody).

But what about the safety to the broody with eggs from another farm?

So, getting into the matter, I know the importance of the cuticle (aka bloom) on the egg and how that protects the developing chick inside from invading bacteria in what can only be considered an unclean environment (the backside of a hen sitting in a functioning coop). 

Normally I do not wash my eggs but place them directly under my broody hens for that reason.

BUT my eggs, are pretty clean as I make effort to keep my nest boxes clean and provide shavings in the paths up to the coop for the constant mud that is Oregon. (I toss those that are really encrusted or filthy.)

When I've sold fertile eggs, I made sure they were the cleanest and freshest I had (and my purchasers reported 80 to 90 percent hatch rates of healthy chicks and healthy broodies).

While fertile eggs do not protect against passing MG to the flock (as it is passed from mother to chick), hatching fertile eggs is one of the safest ways to add new birds and different breeds to a flock.

BUT...what if the breeder doesn't have the same standards as you do? And you find out AFTER pre-arranged payment/pickup or mail receipt?

What about those microscopic contaminants from their farm...viruses, coccidia, mites?

I've pondered about the risk to my hens of placing eggs from another farm under them.

So...what are your thoughts? What are your experiences?

Thank you to all who answer.

LofMc

PS: I decided to wash the dirty eggs under warm (but not hot) water...about 105 degrees, with gentle finger rubbing to rid the deep mud, then air dried. 4 needed cleaning, 2 were okay, so I did not wash. (Somewhat of a control, though not scientific). We'll see what happens.

While i am not someone who hatches all year i am personally glad you asked this question and looking forward to the replies. I hatch in an incubator and under broodies. I prefer the broody. Either way i have never washed the eggs. I feel like leaving the bloom is more important then contamination. If an egg it particularly dirty i just wont set it. I always have good hatches with healthy chicks. No infection etc.. I do fear bio security quite a bit. I am terrified of introducing something to my flock. For this I only purchase eggs from repeatable breeders or people I know have the same bio security. Even then sometimes its not enough. I feel like you have to weigh the pros and cons. I don't worry about using eggs from my own flock.

 

[Ronnie2]

Just a page I would like, I thought about buying chicks, but decided to wait on a broody hen. I got a pulet in the mix of hens I purchased, the hens peck on it until I started feeding them all out of my hand. The pecking has now stopped, or I just don't see it.

 

[Pstock44]

Newbie question...Do I have a broody hen? My Buff Orpington hens are all about 11 months old and the last week or so one of them has been starting to hang out in the nest box more and more each day. The last couple of days she's been very squawky and nippy if we go near her when she's on the nest. Also been fluffing up her feathers when our hand gets close, I won't retrieve eggs unless I'm wearing a glove. Also, today I noticed quite a few feathers in the nest she's been on but now she's moved over to the next nest over. Lastly, we decided to take a peek tonight and she's still in the nest box.

Since the weekend there's been two fake eggs in the nest she's been on and laying in (we want to raise some chicks) as well as extra eggs sometimes showing up from the other hens too. I assume she's going broody but...

How long should I wait to put eggs under her? I plan to do it later, after dark. If I do it tomorrow (Wednesday) night I should have 7-8 "fresh" eggs. A couple more Thursday.
How many should I give her? This would be her, and our first try.

Starting to get excited. Ive been watching everyone post their updates and pics feeling happy for them but still a little sad. We've been waiting for this to happen for us all spring.

Thx for any input.

 

[NysiaAnera]

Newbie question...Do I have a broody hen? My Buff Orpington hens are all about 11 months old and the last week or so one of them has been starting to hang out in the nest box more and more each day. The last couple of days she's been very squawky and nippy if we go near her when she's on the nest. Also been fluffing up her feathers when our hand gets close, I won't retrieve eggs unless I'm wearing a glove. Also, today I noticed quite a few feathers in the nest she's been on but now she's moved over to the next nest over. Lastly, we decided to take a peek tonight and she's still in the nest box.

Since the weekend there's been two fake eggs in the nest she's been on and laying in (we want to raise some chicks) as well as extra eggs sometimes showing up from the other hens too. I assume she's going broody but...

How long should I wait to put eggs under her? I plan to do it later, after dark. If I do it tomorrow (Wednesday) night I should have 7-8 "fresh" eggs. A couple more Thursday.
How many should I give her? This would be her, and our first try.

Starting to get excited. Ive been watching everyone post their updates and pics feeling happy for them but still a little sad. We've been waiting for this to happen for us all spring.

Thx for any input.

Yep, she sounds broody to me. If she is changing nest boxes, I would wait till she is in the same one for a couple days before giving her eggs. When I give a broody eggs, I do it during the day so she can see them. We do our best to rouse her from her trance, and make sure she sees the eggs and pushes them underneath herself. How many eggs you give her should just depend on her size and how many chicks you hope to have. I have heard of hens hatching up to 30 eggs at a time, and I have some that could probably cover that many, but I would never attempt it. A rule of thumb is that a hen can cover 12 of her own eggs. I usually set 14-16 under my largest hens, and they can easily cover more than that. I also have some that I removed eggs from because I felt they weren't covering them all enough. The least I have given a broody is 10. Just some food for thought. Also, if you plan to leave her with the flock, make sure you mark the eggs you give her so you can tell them apart from any new eggs laid by other hens. I draw a line around the center of the eggs, and check the nest every 1-2 days for new eggs.