Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[msmechanic58]

You can keep them together if they get along - otherwise I would separate them.  My two broodies were separated by a landscape fabric curtain to hatch their babies and now they are doing their best to avoid each other.  haha.  These two never got along and Smokey keeps going after Topsy every chance she gets.  Topsy is the kindest, gentlest mother around.  Smokey - a force to be reckoned with!  I would definitely put out bowls of food and water throughout the area and close by the momma/babies until the babies are a little larger.  What happens with my flock is the bigger ones get to the dish and momma/babies are having to wait until the bigs eat most of the food.  I would wait until the hens give up on the eggs - usually what they will do is get up and leave the eggs unattended for a long period of time - or sometimes they might make a new nest near but not on the eggs.  You can always candle the left behind eggs.  Most likely they won't be any good anymore.

Thank! They have shared the sitting and swapped nesting boxes regularly....lol. The barred Rock, Clementine, is a bit more bossy then the Jersey Giant, Bronx. But now, Bronx won' t let me peek but Clem will.....lol. They are mext to each other in the same coop with a divider of wood between them.

 

[sgtmom52]

This is Winnie, my blue laced red Wyandotte, and the 4 chicks she hatched this week. Two of them are FBCM and 2 are mixed EE x FBCM. The EE eggs were blue eggs so I'm hoping for some more green egg layers.

 

[Tripp16]

Wash her eye with some warm saline[ salt water] Tripp she could have a little infection going on, also Terramycin eye ointment from feed store.

Thanks! I will try that today.

 

[stonykill]

Penelope, Patrick and their 6 fuzzy butts. They are 4 days old. 1 is a little camera shy

 

[bobbieschicks]

Here is some eye candy - they are 1 week old today!

 

[bobbieschicks]

AWWWHHHH! So cute!

Penelope, Patrick and their 6 fuzzy butts. They are 4 days old. 1 is a little camera shy

 

[bobbieschicks]

This is Winnie, my blue laced red Wyandotte, and the 4 chicks she hatched this week.  Two of them are FBCM and 2 are mixed EE x FBCM.  The EE eggs were blue eggs so I'm hoping for some more green egg layers.

Adorable! Hope you get your olive egger.

 

[mstricer]

Quote: I'm doing the same thing with my EE's. My FBCM hen hatched 3, 2 looking like EE and one that stayed black. I also hatched the bluest eggs. I love the colored eggs.

 

[JoshU]

I love the pics keep them coming.

I have a question. My girl is in a box high off the ground. I was planning on moving them once everyone hatched because I tried to move them before and she didn't sit on them. Will they have sense enough not to walk off a 3 foot high ledge? should I build a ramp? Do I need to worry about the other chickens, won't mamma defend them?

I've seen where others have built a ramp. Or should I really try moving her again. (Remember she is going on 4 1/2 weeks but has 2 more weeks to go so I'm just praying not to break her brood.) oh and this is her first brood plus we are over her allotted time. yep I walk on the wild side.

maybe you could try to build a barrier around the nest so the chicks cant get over the ledge and the other hens cant get to her. Dont forget feed and water.

 

[Farmin Momma]

I have a bit of a problem and not sure what to do.

My broody Ebony (black Austrolorp) was sitting on 4 turkey eggs, turned out none were fertile. So I bought her 3 banty chicks. She has been doing great with them for the last 3 days or so that she had them, but this morning when I checked on her one of them was dead. I think maybe she got squashed.

I am wondering if I should take the other 2 away from her and just raise them myself? Will she still be broody if I take them?