Single egg broody, can I add more?

[Cryss]

I have a hen that’s going broody for the very first time. She is two years and nine months old. She is sitting on a single egg that she laid yesterday. She has not come off of that egg since yesterday afternoon so we’re coming on to 24 hours. No one else has added to her clutch. They’re all laying in other nests. So I guess my question is if I add more eggs will she realize that she was only sitting on one and consequently reject the rest or reject the entire clutch? Or is it safe to add some eggs. If so how many eggs dare I add? I actually don’t want her to hatch in this nest as it is on a second tier and wouldn’t be safe for chicks. I plan to move her in the night to a separate coop and run inside the big run so she can peacefully brood within vision of the flock. It’s the coop/run I use for introductions. Should I add eggs where she is now and let her get used to the addition or add them to the new nest just before moving her in the night?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I would add now, before they get much younger than rhe current egg. Then wait as long as you can (I usually move when they go into lockdown or start hatching) to move so shes deeper in that state. Moving now could easily just break her

 

[Cryss]

I would add now, before they get much younger than rhe current egg. Then wait as long as you can (I usually move when they go into lockdown or start hatching) to move so shes deeper in that state. Moving now could easily just break her

Would it be better to wait till tonight after dark to add eggs or is it more important to get them under now for the hatch timing?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Would it be better to wait till tonight after dark to add eggs or is it more important to get them under now for the hatch timing?

Add them now. She'll either let you or get off and sneak back on later. Or break of brooding, but that last one is unlikely

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Don't forget to mark all eggs you want her to hatch, just in case other hens DO add fresher eggs to her nest. Remove any fresher eggs added to the nest after the ones you add so you don't get a staggered hatch. Good luck and happy hatching!

 

[Cryss]

Don't forget to mark all eggs you want her to hatch, just in case other hens DO add fresher eggs to her nest. Remove any fresher eggs added to the nest after the ones you add so you don't get a staggered hatch. Good luck and happy hatching!

I have marked them, a total 8? I think?

Add them now. She'll either let you or get off and sneak back on later. Or break of brooding, but that last one is unlikely

I have but a bit worried. First, the nest isn’t very tall. I hope she doesn’t accidentally knock an egg out onto the floor 4 feet below when exiting for her daily walk. Second, we have today entered into our second heat wave! Last heat wave the coop hit 96-98 degrees Fahrenheit even with two 3x3 foot windows open and the coop has plenty of under-eaves ventilation.

Thoughts anyone?

 

[Ridgerunner]

My test to see if a hen is broody enough to deserve eggs is that she stays on the nest for two consecutive nights. I don't care what she does during the daytime and one night is not enough. Two consecutive nights on the nest.

The biggest risk of moving a broody hen is that she will break from being broody. Moving her early could help break her. Remember those two consecutive nights. Make sure she is committed.

I'd mark the one egg she is on and maybe two more, consider them sacrificial eggs. Give them to her and see if really is broody. In the meantime start gathering the eggs you want her to hatch. Don't worry about matching the numbers with what she is on, a broody hen is not going to be counting. I don't know how many eggs you want her to try to hatch. I typically give mine 12 of the size she lays. You want her to be able to comfortably cover the eggs, most can easily do that with a dozen of the size they lay. Eggs and hens come in different sizes. A bantam may have trouble covering 4 or 6 regular sized eggs. Who knows how many bantam eggs a full sized hen can cover.

When the two consecutive nights are up, you can try moving her with her sacrificial eggs. I'd move her at night using as little light and commotion as you can manage. I think it helps if the new nest is kind of dark or at least not brightly lit. Plan on leaving her locked in there until the eggs hatch. You should know within a few hours if she has accepted the move or not.

Once you know she has accepted the move give her the new eggs and toss the sacrificial eggs. They all need to start at the same time so they will hatch at the same time. Personally I'd mark the new eggs, you never know what might happen, but if you commit to her never leaving that new pen and keep all others out, you don't have to.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I'll now address individual points.

So I guess my question is if I add more eggs will she realize that she was only sitting on one and consequently reject the rest or reject the entire clutch? Or is it safe to add some eggs. If so how many eggs dare I add?

I addressed that in the post above but I think it's worth repeating. Don't worry about her counting.

I actually don’t want her to hatch in this nest as it is on a second tier and wouldn’t be safe for chicks.

First, the nest isn’t very tall. I hope she doesn’t accidentally knock an egg out onto the floor 4 feet below when exiting for her daily walk.

My hens regularly hatch in nests 4 feet above the coop floor. The only time it was a problem was when the hen was using a cat litter bucket with a top 7-1/2" x 11-1/2" to hatch in. The early hatched chicks sometime climb up on Mama's back. In that nest when they fell off they fell all the way to the floor since she was sitting so close to the edge of the nest. Four different times I picked a chick up off of the coop floor and put it back in the nest, probably the same chick. It was not hurt from that fall. That's the only time I had a chick fall out.

The nest does matter. That would be my concern whether she was 6" off of the floor or quite high. If you want to post a photo of her on the nest I'll be glad to offer comments. I'm not trying to talk you out of moving her, you'll probably be less stressed if you do. But if she does not accept the move you may be able to let her go back to that nest and let her try to hatch up there. A fallback position.

I plan to move her in the night to a separate coop and run inside the big run so she can peacefully brood within vision of the flock. It’s the coop/run I use for introductions. Should I add eggs where she is now and let her get used to the addition or add them to the new nest just before moving her in the night?

As I said, I'd wait until I know she has accepted the move before I gave her the real hatching eggs. But you can certainly give them to her at any time. Delaying just means you don't sacrifice the eggs of the move doesn't work.

Good luck! However you go about it you will have an exciting time.

 

[Cryss]

Anyone wanting a follow up, I’ve started a thread “How long can a hen leave eggs”.

 

[Auntiejessi3]

I have marked them, a total 8? I think?


I have but a bit worried. First, the nest isn’t very tall. I hope she doesn’t accidentally knock an egg out onto the floor 4 feet below when exiting for her daily walk. Second, we have today entered into our second heat wave! Last heat wave the coop hit 96-98 degrees Fahrenheit even with two 3x3 foot windows open and the coop has plenty of under-eaves ventilation.

Thoughts anyone?

I live in Texas, I had a broody hatch chicks 5 weeks ago in temps higher than that, she knows what she's doing