ForTheLoveOfSilkies
Free Ranging
Wow she's been broody sitting for 9 weeks already? Then now another 3 weeks with these new eggs. 3 months of being broody is a long time! Sorry but I wouldn't allow her to be broody that long as it does take a toll on their health sitting all day and night (apart from a quick break for a tiny nibble and dust bath) They usually loose weight and depreciate in health... I hope your Pippin will be ok though, do you have an incubator as a backup? And brooder setup if she rejects the chick/chicks?Broody question:
when Pippin was brooding on a shop egg (around 9 weeks ago), she had food\water bowls in the coop, I still took her outside twice a day to make sure she ate. But it was a shop egg, I knew it wouldn't hatch.
Now, Pippin has her food\water bowls, should I still take her out? I am worried if I do, it breaks her broodiness, I don't want her to give up on her fertile ones! I wasn't so worried about it last time (because it wouldn't hatch anyway). What do you guys think? Any other broody tips?
I would take away the supermarket egg as it could go rotten and explode under her, messy!
Leave food and water for her nearby. She will get up herself to eat and drink.. often it's only once a day as they only eat/drink very little. If you do notice her not getting up then you can get her up yourself, sometimes they go a few day without getting up.
Honestly if I knew before Pippin was broody that long I would have suggested to break her and not get the fertile eggs.. leave it till next time so she can take recover and be in top health again.
I have had 2 hens die after raising chicks, its like they expended all their energy on brooding and raising the chicks then went down in health fast, died from unknown causes