Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[Atomic Ranch]

yw. Actually with the chicks I hatched so far I'm over 100. plus the broody's are just starting!

 

[Atomic Ranch]

I'm not sure if Smokey is going broody after all. She has been spending more time in the nest box to lay. That's what she did the last time right before she went broody. Time will tell. I'm not sure if I will take advantage of her broody or not. Our eggs aren't getting fertilized right now. Good old Davy barely gets on one of the lavender orpingtons and I know he's not been on Smokey. She'd sooner kill him then let him on her back. So I'd have to get chicks or eggs.
I fear that all five of the recent chicks I've hatched are roosters, three from Smokey and two from a bator.

LOL... I'll trade you roos! Mine has the Barry White on repeat. Hey, how can you tell if the chicks are male or female?

 

[Tripp16]

that is a good sign

I went and took her eggs today I got so mad at her when I got home today! She is not going to let those eggs rot. If she wants to go broody she better start learning to go broody with golf balls under her! LOL

Besides I would rather have a really good broody then a not so good one. Thanks for you help!

 

[stonykill]

I went and took her eggs today I got so mad at her when I got home today! She is not going to let those eggs rot. If she wants to go broody she better start learning to go broody with golf balls under her! LOL

Besides I would rather have a really good broody then a not so good one. Thanks for you help!

 

[bobbieschicks]

Quote:
LOL... I'll trade you roos! Mine has the Barry White on repeat. Hey, how can you tell if the chicks are male or female?

They are old enough now to tell by comb growth. The older chicks are 10 weeks on Saturday. And the younger ones were 6 weeks old on Tuesday. I'm just guessing about two of them. But I'm certain on the other three.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Quote:
LOL... I'll trade you roos! Mine has the Barry White on repeat. Hey, how can you tell if the chicks are male or female?

I rehomed my white leghorn roo and my lavender Orpington roo. I kept the silkie roo to give the girls a break. But I didn't expect this big of a break. The only time he really mans up is early in the morning or if I play a YouTube of our old roosters crowing. Then suddenly he will try to mate the LO girls.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Well today was not a happy day, I had blocked off my nesting box so my bantie could get some privacy. One of the big girls tore it up and killed all her chicks I wanted to cry so much. As soon as I opened the coop she ran to me screaming, then she ran to the first peeping baby with a broken neck. I scooped up all the chicks in an empty treat dish and removed them immediately from her sight. I then grabbed a few live chicks that I had and put them in place of the dead chicks. I brought them back to her sight and showed her they were all okay, she immediately bit me and jumped in the treat dish and sat on them.

Now she is in a cage away from the other girls. I can't believe my big girls did this.

Here she is with the new batch of chicks. I put them in an outside cage first so they could get acquainted and they spent about 45 minutes out there in the fresh air.

Wow how awful, and poor mama, so glad to hear you were able to give her some more chicks, Chickens can be very cruel. Glad to see the little family doing so well.

 

[Miss Lydia]

yw. Actually with the chicks I hatched so far I'm over 100. plus the broody's are just starting!

Wow we're are you putting them all?

 

[Miss Lydia]

if she were mine, I would leave her alone to have her hatch. Always remember chickens hatched chicks for 10,000 years without human help

X2!!! she'll do an awesome job and all you have to do is sit back and enjoy.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Thanks, Deb! It's originally designed for guinea pigs or small bunnies. Got it for not-a-lot at the garden centre. Does a fine job as a broody house, I just wish it were a bit bigger so I could put food and water in, and that it had a lockable door for the night

Wow Fuffy such pretty eggs, Congrats... and looks like Hermione is up for the duration..