Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[Miss Lydia]

My Blue Copper Marans is DEFINITELY broody. She left the nest for most of the day yesterday then hunkered down last night and hasn't left so far today so I'm still hoping I'll get one more egg from her to add to the clutch I'm collecting for her. And already the nonsense has begun with the other ladies climbing all over her so I'm thinking I'll get her locked up before I give her her official eggs.

 

[prairie]

I think I finally have the hen house back to being calm after yesterday's squawking and carrying on. The hens are back to their old nest boxes and the 2 broody's are into their boxes with a little fencing around them. They haven't stirred at all but they do have water and food with them. Finally everyone found a nest to use.

Tonight we will give the little Cornish her guinea eggs. I just can't wait to see if any of them hatch!!

I've got 10 or 11 , can't remember, under the Australorp and they are due to hatch on 4th of July and now tonight Cornie will get 5 guinea eggs and they should hatch in 28 days. Can't wait!!

 

[wildriverswolf90]

My cochin Lily is a momma again e after waiting 3 weeks she finaly has 3 lil barnyard mix chicks to raise. And my silkie sukie is now sitting on 5 silkie eggs, I snuck them under her on the 6th!

And I've got 17 chicks that hatched out the bator last saturday! Ok I'll admit it I love have chicks everywhere
I think I'm addicted

 

[chickenguysmom]

Update - 5 of 6 eggs hatched. One was a dud, cracked it on the lawn and it was just an egg. WHEW!!! The single hen had the dud egg, so she has two babies. The co-mamas had 3 hatch and they were co-raising them for about two days, until the co-broody mama that we got at the flea market (and was not hand-raised by us) went all rooster on me. Attacked my hand and created a ruckus in the brooding cage. During the ruckus, she tried to bite me and took a chunk out of one of her babies instead. Mouthful of feathers and some flesh from the baby. That night, once it was dark, she went back to the coop with the other chickens. Mama-no-more. The back-up co-mama is doing fine with the chicks and it's much calmer in the pen. Baby chick got a couple of squirts of neo-to-go (neosporin) and healed up fine. I don't think the problem was caused by the second broody so much as it was in her nature to try to protect her babies from us. Our hand raised chickens have always let us have free access to their babies and never fuss. Everyone is doing fine now.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Update - 5 of 6 eggs hatched. One was a dud, cracked it on the lawn and it was just an egg. WHEW!!! The single hen had the dud egg, so she has two babies. The co-mamas had 3 hatch and they were co-raising them for about two days, until the co-broody mama that we got at the flea market (and was not hand-raised by us) went all rooster on me. Attacked my hand and created a ruckus in the brooding cage. During the ruckus, she tried to bite me and took a chunk out of one of her babies instead. Mouthful of feathers and some flesh from the baby. That night, once it was dark, she went back to the coop with the other chickens. Mama-no-more. The back-up co-mama is doing fine with the chicks and it's much calmer in the pen. Baby chick got a couple of squirts of neo-to-go (neosporin) and healed up fine. I don't think the problem was caused by the second broody so much as it was in her nature to try to protect her babies from us. Our hand raised chickens have always let us have free access to their babies and never fuss. Everyone is doing fine now.

Good news and congrats on the hatch, don't forget the pics.

 

[BarnGoddess01]

Quote:
She's broody! And she did give me that final egg I anticipated. Took an hour or so off the nest today (I tucked her final egg into the carton I have "chilling" to hatch) and she was back sitting on the sacrifice eggs.) She even found the right nest!!! (Better than my Red Sex Link last year!) So I'll collect the eggs I hope she'll hatch for us for another day or two. Make sure Naima is committed and .....

I'm still thinking my Red Sex Link looks like she's considering another brood this year and I have a Splash Ameraucana looking suspicious as well. I may have a coop FULL of broodies before I know it! (I wish!!!)

 

[stonykill]

She's broody! And she did give me that final egg I anticipated. Took an hour or so off the nest today (I tucked her final egg into the carton I have "chilling" to hatch) and she was back sitting on the sacrifice eggs.) She even found the right nest!!! (Better than my Red Sex Link last year!) So I'll collect the eggs I hope she'll hatch for us for another day or two. Make sure Naima is committed and .....

I'm still thinking my Red Sex Link looks like she's considering another brood this year and I have a Splash Ameraucana looking suspicious as well. I may have a coop FULL of broodies before I know it! (I wish!!!)

 

[Johnn]

Sorry im re-posting this incase some one has just came online and hasn't looked back on the thread because im desperate for a anwer.
Went to my hens today after being away for a couple of days, found my Buff Orpington and cream legbar broody!, Ivegfot a problem htough i think they might have lice because a few other hens do, should i use powder and risk scaring them off by handling them or should i put a tray in their broody shed with lice powder in so they can have a dust bath in it? Also can i just get eggs out the nesting box's the hens lay that day and put them into their nest? they have not got any eggs yet that they will be keeping
Sorry if i sound in pacient, Im desperate.

 

[vmdanielsen]

Sorry im re-posting this incase some one has just came online and hasn't looked back on the thread because im desperate for a anwer.
Went to my hens today after being away for a couple of days, found my Buff Orpington and cream legbar broody!, Ivegfot a problem htough i think they might have lice because a few other hens do, should i use powder and risk scaring them off by handling them or should i put a tray in their broody shed with lice powder in so they can have a dust bath in it? Also can i just get eggs out the nesting box's the hens lay that day and put them into their nest? they have not got any eggs yet that they will be keeping
Sorry if i sound in pacient, Im desperate.https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...-hatch-a-long-and-informational-thread/10660#

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...-hatch-a-long-and-informational-thread/10660#

John, are they sitting on eggs? I don't know if I would treat a broody on eggs. I would treat first then let her sit. I did had a problem with lice. Was using DE at the time so I dusted with 7( I hate the stuff, didn't work, cleaned out coop, Dusted, put 7 in their dusting box and they still returned. I ended up treating them twice with eprinex. I wouldn't put eggs under a broody with lice. I would collect them, stick them in the bator, treat the hens after collecting eggs an if she was still broody, return the unaffected eggs. I really like to have a broody do the work. I would eradicate the lice first. Just my opinion. Hopefully others will chime in with threir ideas and opinions also.

 

[Johnn]

I dont have a incubator