Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[Tripp16]

My Isa Brown and her brood! We have 10 chicks but I could not get them to hold still long enough to get in the picture!




Its so funny how she puffs up! She is not nearly that size but she was not liking me sticking that camera and clicking it around the chicks!

Very cute. Your right, the little chicks run around like little water bugs! Lol I can never get a family photo of everyone!

 

[Miss Lydia]

My Isa Brown and her brood! We have 10 chicks but I could not get them to hold still long enough to get in the picture!




Its so funny how she puffs up! She is not nearly that size but she was not liking me sticking that camera and clicking it around the chicks!

Pretty mama and chicks Congrats!!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Well got the broodys sorted with eggs today the orpington has 10 and melow has 9, do you start counting down 21 days on the day the eggs were put under of the day after? also i checked ginger under her wings for lice there was non so i turned her around and looked around her vent and there was absalutley loads! so i took her into the shed and dusted her and i checked a few other hens but they were clear

day 1 starts the day after you set them.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Well now it looks like all three of Smokey's first clutch are roosters. They are 16 weeks old today.

The two Wellies were obvious early on, but now the Ameraucana thread has changed their earlier guess from pullet and said my Miss Ebony is a cockerel. . Wah! I didn't get my dark eggs and now I won't get my blue one.

I can only house 14 LF so I am about to rehome all cockerels except my silkie roo to make room for any pullets from the latest broods. Although I may keep one wellie for a LF roo, I'm on the fence about that still.

My guesses so far on the silkies is that Topsy has both cockerels and Smokey has two cockerels and two pullets. Time will tell.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Very cute. Your right, the little chicks run around like little water bugs! Lol I can never get a family photo of everyone! 

That's the only real benefit to using a brooder, you can corner them easier in it.

 

[mnferalkitty]

I have never had a broody hen ever and now all of sudden I have a black aust. sitting on eggs for 2 days now. Alot of the straw got kicked out can I add more straw when she gets up to eat? If yes should I put it under the eggs?

 

[plantcityhomestead]

Yes - I've kept mine with the larger flock all three times by wiring off a section for the broody's in the main coop. That way once the chicks hatched I could open it up and let the momma's take out the chicks, but I didn't have to worry about broken eggs and shared nests in the interim. The mommas protect the babies and will intergrate them into the larger flock. If you've had them together this whole time - then just make sure the nest area where the momma is located is on or close to the floor and provide chick feed & water for them on the 3rd day after hatch. If she's up in a nest box off the ground you may have issues with babies getting out of the nest early - if that looks like it might happen just block the lower portion of the nest for a couple of days after they hatch.

Thanks, bobbieschicks. It is so encouraging to know that there is a chance that they can stay together. The broody has been in a dog house in the main pen, so elevation won't be a problem. The other hens have been helping the broody with the eggs. They sit on the eggs when mom takes a break, so I am hoping they will accept the chicks. I did loose a few eggs to the visitors, but I wanted to keep them together. The broody is a low ranking hen, and I thought removing her might create more problems, so I will have to keep an eye on things. I guess I will have to give chick feed to everyone, and provide extra calcium, because the older chickens alway steal the chick feed, and don't eat their own feed.

 

[CarolJ]

Here's a video of Onyx and her babies. I candled the two eggs that didn't hatch. They were duds. So here are my 9 babies! There are 2 yellow, 2 grey/blue, 1 black, and 4 chipmunk stripes. (This is the first time I've posted a video on BYC - hope it works!

Onyx looks like she's loving being able to dust bathe in the pine shavings after sitting on those eggs so long! And she kicks up dust/shavings all over the chicks - and they aren't bothered by it at all.

 

[plantcityhomestead]

Soap Junkie, your little feathered family is so cute. Thank you for sharing.

 

[plantcityhomestead]

Carol, the video works, and I am so glad it did. The chicks disappearing under the dust bath was so cute.