Question about Broody and baby chicks in the cold

[Chickflick2]

I would recommend you make sure she is not up in a hen box on her eggs. Make sure they are all nested on the ground/floor so she can stay on top of them while they hatch. Last year I had a hen setting on eggs in a box and right after the first one hatched, it must have fallen out of the nest and she jumped down to stay with it. The other 4 that were in various stages of hatching never made it completely out. They started hatching in the middle of the night and I think they got too cold without her. I felt so bad because it was my mistake.

 

[Tmaxson01]

The nesting box in this coop is on the floor level. We decided to make it that way just for this reason. I have three coops and this last one is by far the best design. We have a poop deck also and lots of ventilation.

I haven't candled, we'll just see what happens. The last time we had a broody, she was sitting on 8 eggs. Five had hatched and I wondered how long to wait for the other three. On day three after the five hatched the hen kicked the last three eggs that didn't hatch out and I threw them out. Hoping for the same this time, we'll see. Here is a picture of my current broody on day 5. I am so excited to see what we get because the Rooster is a RIR and the hens in with him are RIR, Cuckoo, Welsummers and Easter Eggers. Two of the eggs are the EE eggs and the others are a good mix of all the other hens.