Silkie Hen not sitting on egg

[Silkie Keeper 7]

My silkie hen just laid its first egg today and since I have a rooster I think the egg might be fertilised. But after she laid the egg she sat on it for a couple of minutes and then left. And since then she hasn't sat on the egg yet, so would anything happen to the egg or will she sit on it again??

 

[ChickenCanoe]

The impending embryo will be in suspended animation till she lays an entire clutch and then sits continuously. If they didn't do that, it would be a staggered hatch and when she left the nest to take the first couple chicks to eat and drink, the rest of the embryos would die.

Plus, if it's her first egg, it's best if she doesn't go broody.
Pullet eggs are too small. Not enough space or nutrition for healthy chicks.

 

[Wyandottes7]

Welcome to BYC!

We're glad to have you.

X2 on ChickenCanoe. Chickens don't sit on their eggs until they have a clutch (usually 8-13).

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello and Welcome To BYC! There are also some nice articles in the Learning center on broody hens you might like to check out, ie https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/broody-hens and https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/guide-to-letting-broody-hens-hatch-and-raise-chicks

 

[BantamLover21]

Glad you joined us!

X2 on the above posters.

 

[Silkie Keeper 7]

Ok thanks for the reply. Just one more question, if my silkie is going broody and the eggs are fertilised will my Silkie hen continue to lay everyday or just one egg every 2-3 days ?

 

[Kelsie2290]

Be sure to check out those nice broody hen articles in the Learning Center, they are quite helpful. A hen that is really "broody" will not be laying eggs (she may lay an egg the day or so she starts, but not more than that). They will continue to lay eggs pretty consistently in the amount of whatever is normal for them until they go broody. How often or how many eggs they do depends, some hens will lay everyday, some hens only a couple a week, it is up to the individual hen and her genetics... I have one silkie who pretty consistently lays 2-3 eggs in one week and then goes broody, others will lay for a month or two or more 4-5 eggs a week before they go broody...you probably want to put a couple of fake eggs in the nest and collect the real eggs and date them with a pencil and then give the newest ones back to her when she goes broody (how to store hatching eggs is discussed in the articles).

 

[Mountain Peeps]

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Ok thanks for the reply. Just one more question, if my silkie is going broody and the eggs are fertilised will my Silkie hen continue to lay everyday or just one egg every 2-3 days ?

Once a hen goes broody, as I said earlier, they won't lay any more eggs. That's how they all hatch the same day.
A hen lays a clutch, anywhere from 1 to 10 eggs and then they go broody. From that point on, there will be no more eggs. They won't lay eggs while broody nor will they lay eggs till they wean the brood. It's often 2 to 4 months without eggs.

Fertilized eggs or not doesn't matter. A hen that wants to raise a family doesn't care if eggs are fertile or not or even if there are eggs. They'll sit on a vacant nest.

 

[drumstick diva]

Welcome to Backyard chickens. Broodies are great but, you can't make a hen go broody and sometimes the young girls don't do a good job the first or even second time. Every time a silkie lays an egg doesn't mean she has the hormone rush to hatch them. When she does, you'll KNOW she is broody.