Placing fertile eggs under a hen that's already been broody for two weeks?

[L1sa]

Good luck.

Moving a broody is no easy task! Others on here seem to have managed it, but I've not been successful when I've tried. The broody moved fine once the chicks had hatched though! I think the way to do it though is definitely to do it at night and confine her to her new spot for a few days, or she'll be straight back to her old nest at the first chance. I'm really not sure about the eggs tho and whether to give her the precious fertile eggs straight away as I've had breakages when I've tried. Hopefully someone who has succeeded will be along soon to give you better advice.

Good luck

 

[Ashleybess]

Good luck.

Moving a broody is no easy task! Others on here seem to have managed it, but I've not been successful when I've tried. The broody moved fine once the chicks had hatched though! I think the way to do it though is definitely to do it at night and confine her to her new spot for a few days, or she'll be straight back to her old nest at the first chance. I'm really not sure about the eggs tho and whether to give her the precious fertile eggs straight away as I've had breakages when I've tried. Hopefully someone who has succeeded will be along soon to give you better advice.

Good luck

Crud! Well, maybe I will just keep checking on her regularly and move the eggs if needed. So have you had a broody hatch eggs in a less-than-ideal place and if so did it go okay? If the chick(s) do hatch (and I intend to do everything in my power to see that that happens!) should I be concerned about the other hens and / or my two roos bothering her and the chick(s)?

Thank you so much for the advice!

 

[L1sa]

Crud! Well, maybe I will just keep checking on her regularly and move the eggs if needed. So have you had a broody hatch eggs in a less-than-ideal place and if so did it go okay? If the chick(s) do hatch (and I intend to do everything in my power to see that that happens!) should I be concerned about the other hens and / or my two roos bothering her and the chick(s)?

Thank you so much for the advice!

I have had broodies hatch in less than ideal places! In with the general population and in the main nesting box usually, so the other hens just kept sitting on top of broody mummas and laying eggs on top of them!! The fertile Eggs have been stepped on, broken, kicked out, eaten, and mysteriously vanished. On one occasion I mistakenly collected 2 thinking they were extras that the other hens had laid and I found them in the fridge the next day . So as you can see, definitely less than ideal!! The hatch rate each time has only been 1/6. I vowed never to let a broody hatch in GP again, so I have prepared a place now, a little coop within the main run that can be closed off. My next broody will be moved before she is given any fertile ones to hatch!

Having said that, the broodys were able to raise the chicks within the GP with not much hassle, they did get pecked a few times but nothing out of the ordinary, just a pecking order thing.



Heres my latest 2 week old babies in amongst some of the hens, mum isn't even in the pic here!

Good luck.

 

[WVduckchick]

I usually let mine hatch in the main coop with all the others. Mark eggs on the fat end at some point. Occasionally I’ll feel the need to block off the nest box, if the hen happens to be a lower ranking girl, and more dominant ones try to take over. I’ve moved broodies during hatches, even with pips already happening or some chicks already hatched! My decisions are usually based on the individual hens. I’ve put up temporary net barriers too.

 

[Ashleybess]

Well... we *would* have had a successful hatch, I believe, if any of the eggs has been fertile. My friend who supplied the supposedly fertile eggs told me after the fact "oh, I should've told you to only use the eggs on the left side of the carton... I found the others in our barn and they're probably too old." I was quite annoyed. By that point I had no idea which ones i'd used but obviously I must've used the old ones. I feel terrible for my girl
Five weeks of work for nothing.

My candling was with a too-weak flashlight, obviously, because I mistook the yolk for the air sac.

Well, I suppose I learned a lot from this experience, but I'm heartbroken.

 

[WVduckchick]

Well... we *would* have had a successful hatch, I believe, if any of the eggs has been fertile. My friend who supplied the supposedly fertile eggs told me after the fact "oh, I should've told you to only use the eggs on the left side of the carton... I found the others in our barn and they're probably too old." I was quite annoyed. By that point I had no idea which ones i'd used but obviously I must've used the old ones. I feel terrible for my girl
Five weeks of work for nothing.

My candling was with a too-weak flashlight, obviously, because I mistook the yolk for the air sac.

Well, I suppose I learned a lot from this experience, but I'm heartbroken.

Oh no!!!
How is the hen handling it? She may mope around for a couple days, but hopefully she is ready to get back to normal chicken life.

 

[Ashleybess]

Oh no!!!
How is the hen handling it? She may mope around for a couple days, but hopefully she is ready to get back to normal chicken life.

Well, she was out in the yard like normal this morning after I took the eggs from her... now she's sitting in the box again I dunno... I guess I'll just see what happens. Thinking the original eggs she was sitting on were *not* fertile is what got us in to this whole pickle in the first place so I'm thinking maybe I just shouldn't need with her and *eventually* we'll actually have some chicks... maybe?! Apparently our two 8-month-old silkie roos are old enough to do their duties bc of that first poor little developing chick whose egg we cracked I still feel guilty!

 

[Ashleybess]

Shouldn't bother her, I mean Weird autocorrect!

 

[L1sa]

How about getting her some day old chicks? Place them under her at night and she'll wake up in the morning a happy and fulfilled mumma.

 

[Ashleybess]

How about getting her some day old chicks? Place them under her at night and she'll wake up in the morning a happy and fulfilled mumma.

I'm not sure where to get them this time of year. I called Tractor Supply, Orscheln et al. Maybe a breeder? I can ask around.