Topic of the Week - Broody vs Incubator

[Silexian]

I need to hatch on a schedule and hatch more eggs than broody hens can cover. So I use incubators more than I do broody hens. I do isolate and give any hen that goes broody some eggs to hatch. Or some chicks to raise, if I know they will accept them. As I do enjoy watching a hen taking care of her brood. I also think broody raised chicks are all around healthier than brooder raised chicks.

 

[PippinTheChicken]

I've done a total of 4 hatches. 2 incubator, 2 broody. I enjoy both in different ways, but here are the results.

• Hatch1 incubator- 6 shipped eggs- all developed- 50% hatch rate
• Hatch2 broody- 6 shipped eggs- 4/6 developed- 50% hatch rate
• Hatch3 incubator- 6 shipped eggs- all developed- 50% hatch rate
• Hatch4 broody- 4 local eggs- all developed- 100% hatch rate

This probably doesn't say anything apart from that local eggs get better hatch rates than shipped ones, and they do.
I like incubators and broodies!

 

[Crazychickengirl2]

brooder accident)

What happened?

 

[K0k0shka]

Incubator-hatched, human-raised chicks make better pets, so I prefer the incubator if I want pet chickens. Broodies if I only want the chickens for meat.

 

[ForTheLoveOfSilkies]

I don't own an incubator machine, just Silkies!
I have found some are better at sitting and mothering then others and don't give the bad ones a 2nd chance.
I've had to raise a couple chicks myself after a mother hen tried to kill them and it's hard work, so I much prefer mother hen to do the job! So much easier for a broody to take care of all the incubating and mothering including integrating chicks into the flock, and the portable clucking heat source is just brilliant when out foraging!

 

[themotleycoopchic]

I have not used an incubator yet but my broody silkie was easy to manage, had a 100% hatch rate, and raised the chicks for me. I still interacted with her and the chicks feeding them scrambled eggs before bed time a few times per week to bond with them. It worked well having a broody do all the work. I just assisted when needed, marking/candling eggs and giving her a space to do her job safely.

 

[WoDia]

I like hen brooding the best. I do take precautions and place the mamas and eggs into the “maternity ward”, so that they won’t be disturbed by flock members. I have a blue slate turkey hen who wanted to brood so much at one point, that I let her have chicken eggs (since she kept trying to sit on the chicken eggs anyhow). She‘s on the small side, so brooding Ameraucana eggs has worked quite well, and she‘s raised a lot of chicks…. both chicken and turkey. She spends all of her time with the chickens instead of the other turkeys anyhow. Perhaps, she thinks she’s a chicken? Also from my experience, I’ve found that my sweetest hens are the best incubators and terrific mamas. Some examples: my Silky/Sebright bantams, Australorps, and a particular turkey hen.

On the other hand, I like incubators as well. Paying a little more for higher quality is worth it, I believe. Sometimes I want to incubate eggs, but there’s not a broody hen in sight. So, this is also a good way to go. And, I’ve preferred an incubator for incubating my seramas so far, but I do hear that some seramas can be good mamas too. I may try that with the right hen .

 

[PurpleCArTires]

I like both. I only hatch 12 at a time and have pretty good luck with my incubator. If one of my hens goes broody, I give her some eggs instead of just waiting for her broody to break (I figure why waste the 21+ days without eggs from her).

I usually get 8-10 out of 12 hatching in the Bator. Most failures are due to not fertilized eggs.

My broody hens are so so. I have found my Silkies suck. They love to sit on eggs, but 2 of my 3 Silkies will attempt to "help" the chick hatch. I've lost 3 chicks to this nonsense. So I take their eggs at 18 days and give them some stand ins. Then once the babies hatch, sneak them back under and maybe add some chicks that hatched in the Bator. They are good moms for the most part once the babies hatch.

My 2 BR broody are amazing vicious protectors of their eggs and babies. They haven't lost any babies, but they tend to brood them beyond "teenage" years and take forever to start laying again.

Either way it's so amazing to see the momma's with the babies. I'll continue to use both.

 

[MWSIFarm]

Im yet to get into breeding some one tell me if my plan is doomed to fail, but I have a flock of silkies that go broody all the time and sometimes we break em out of it and sometimes not. I plan on using the silkies to rear the eventual RIR flock we plan to have for eggs and meat. So we will let the RIR rooster mate and the RIR hen lay her eggs and then slip them under one of our super broody silkies and let them do the work.

This is very small scale not really fussed if we hatch 1 egg or 50, just an idea ive had rolling around in my head

 

[Prop toe]

I used incubators to raise my seed brood so there was no doubt of the blood in the brood however chicks seen to be more vibrant and healthy raised under hens I purchased some adult hens to hatch fowl as well they are strong disease resistant and ate great sitters and mother's and they hatch eggs one clutch afther the other and will accept any brood and care for them however I kept all biddies in brood boxes till feathered almost then put them in a ground brooder with a shed roost built on the back of the ground brooder what works for you stick with it good day all and good luck this brood season