Still broody after chicks die?

[Strychten]

I had 2 hens go broody around the same time, one a barred rock (Speck) and one Rhode island red (Nugget). I tried to keep the number of eggs under them to 10 each but when the broody would get up to eat another hen would jump in and lay another egg. Anyway ... Speck had 2 chicks hatch and lost interest in sitting the rest of the eggs, but is being an awesome mom to the two that hatched. Nugget seemed to have several that hatched and died or were killed either by her or other hens, but ultimately ended up with one chick that she was caring for, for about 4 days. Yesterday I found that chick pretty much torn apart. Since none of the remaining eggs had been sat on, I cleaned the nesting boxes and threw the remaining eggs out. Last night after dark when I checked on them, Nugget was not on the roost with the rest of the flock but was back inside the nesting box in a cozy nest she made out of the fresh hay, even though there were no eggs to sit on or chicks to care for. Speck doesn't even take her two chicks into the nest any more but sits with them at the base of the roost instead. All of that preamble for these questions. Will Nugget continue to be broody? Should I put more eggs under her? I just don't know what to do for the poor girl.

 

[azygous]

With no chicks to raise, Nugget will eventually cease making broody hormones. You can hurry the process by blocking off her access to nests. Or put her in a broody breaking cage. It shouldn't take long.

 

[aart]

Good background info.
I'd put her in a broody breaker crate.
Maybe first try taking her from nest at night and put her on roost after dark.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

When my gals have lost chicks to predators... it takes a few days for it to really change for them. But sometimes it does take a little help from us.

I too start by insisting she goes to roost.

I would not put more eggs under her if she already sat a long time and such. Finish breaking her and let her go through another cycle. She will be broody again in the future.

Maybe mark your starting hatching eggs under the broody next time. I do a circle around each direction (equator) with a sharpie, so it can easily be seen when I look under for new egg deposits nightly. Pencil rubbed off WAY to easy and I accidentally collected an embryo, but didn't notice until too late to put it back.

Biggest danger to my chicks is getting out of their box before mama and not making it back in they chill quickly and face flock antics. Blocking the nest until hatch is over and mum is ready to bring them out helps.

Speck did the right thing by focusing on the chicks that were alive. Staggered hatches often create issues. Sorry for your losses.

But congrats on your successes.

I REFUSE to let my hens "hatch" their chicks out closer than 2 weeks apart. It creates a lot of confusion for chicks and hormonal hell for other flock mates.

Still takes a short time to return to lay after losing chicks. Often about a week to 10 days for my crew.

 

[Strychten]

Thank you all for the help. I will start insisting that she roost in the evenings. Should be fairly easy since Speck is not using the nesting boxes at night, I can just put Nugget on the roost and block off the boxes until morning. I tried marking them like you said, circle around the equator, but used pencil because I heard that a Sharpie was toxic and could seep through the pores in the eggshell, and also like you said it rubbed off FAST. Instead of collecting a potential embryo, if I could not tell whether the egg was new or not I just left it. When I cleaned out the boxes yesterday, I broke about 5 eggs that looked pretty new on the inside. Also 5 eggs with embryos in various stages.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I heard that a Sharpie was toxic a

I can adamantly tell you that I mark every single one of my eggs even inside my bator using Sharpie and get good hatches. Even 100% sometimes. It has been running since before Thanksgiving and I have hatched hundreds of chicks. I know @Ridgerunner also uses Sharpie. If it makes you feel *more* comfortable you could try non toxic crayola type markers. I avoid red because it looks like blood sometimes when it gets pipped even if it isn't.

Thing I have learned since joining BYC... what works for some might not work for others. A lot of people spread what they heard or read and NOT what they know or verified. And while some are careless others are fear mongers. It's great to have a resource where we can get second, third, and more opinions. And always choose what makes sense to YOU. If it doesn't work out, switch it up.

 

[Strychten]

Eggcellent! You are correct, I was commenting with what I have heard and not what I have tried. Next time I will use the sharpie!

By the way, here is momma Speck and the two little ones.