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- #11
O.K. even though we had snow today and it was freezing, Ruth found her way to horse stables and laid another egg. There's nine now.
For those of you who have had broody hens does this mean she will go broody and start to sit on them - and then what do I do? She can't stay over there by herself. Or for some reason is she just choosing to go lay her eggs somewhere else?
She gets picked on by the others since she nearly died as a baby with her twisted neck and couldn't eat and was found on pen floor being trampled. I had to separate her and hand feed her for weeks while massaging her neck and feeding her vitamin supplements. She's been my "baby" and pet ever since but never fit back in with others. It was a Godsend when I added the baby Buffs in August because she adopted them and stayed with them from the time they were a day old. All the big girls would go out to free range but Ruth stayed with the babies and followed them everywhere and even put them in coop with her. She does hang out with all the rest now and the "baby" Buffs are now laying eggs of their own at exactly 5 months. So maybe Ruth is wanting to be a real mother this time. I would love to get hatching eggs but as Prissy would say: "Lordy, Lordy Miss Scarlet, I don't know nothing bout hatching no babies".
If I order eggs and put them under her, if she starts to sit, will she take care of them from that point forward? I know I've read that they may quit on a batch of eggs and I guess I would have to get an incubator. Anyone got a few fertilized eggs they want to sell? It doesn't matter which breeds, I plan on adding a few of each over time since we now have two huge chicken coops, horse stalls and a large barn to raise chickens in.
Please advise - not sure what to do. It'll break my heart if she starts to sit on that pile of non-fertile eggs and I have to take them away from her.
For those of you who have had broody hens does this mean she will go broody and start to sit on them - and then what do I do? She can't stay over there by herself. Or for some reason is she just choosing to go lay her eggs somewhere else?
She gets picked on by the others since she nearly died as a baby with her twisted neck and couldn't eat and was found on pen floor being trampled. I had to separate her and hand feed her for weeks while massaging her neck and feeding her vitamin supplements. She's been my "baby" and pet ever since but never fit back in with others. It was a Godsend when I added the baby Buffs in August because she adopted them and stayed with them from the time they were a day old. All the big girls would go out to free range but Ruth stayed with the babies and followed them everywhere and even put them in coop with her. She does hang out with all the rest now and the "baby" Buffs are now laying eggs of their own at exactly 5 months. So maybe Ruth is wanting to be a real mother this time. I would love to get hatching eggs but as Prissy would say: "Lordy, Lordy Miss Scarlet, I don't know nothing bout hatching no babies".
If I order eggs and put them under her, if she starts to sit, will she take care of them from that point forward? I know I've read that they may quit on a batch of eggs and I guess I would have to get an incubator. Anyone got a few fertilized eggs they want to sell? It doesn't matter which breeds, I plan on adding a few of each over time since we now have two huge chicken coops, horse stalls and a large barn to raise chickens in.
Please advise - not sure what to do. It'll break my heart if she starts to sit on that pile of non-fertile eggs and I have to take them away from her.
