what do i do

[rooster092]

My hen has layed 7 eggs already and is about to sit them i dpnt know what to do when the chicks come

 

[QueenMisha]

Broody hens don't require a lot of interference. The first day she spends a full day on the nest, mark the calender. Then count 21 days from that day and mark the calender again. That is around the time your chicks will hatch.

Do your best to keep other hens from interfering with her. Mark the eggs you plan to let her hatch with a sharpie, and check the nest every few days. If any new, unmarked eggs appear, remove them and throw them out.

On day 20 and 21, put very small bowls of food and water on the edge of the nest, somewhere she can reach them without standing up. This way she won't have to leave the chicks on the days of hatching.

Once the chicks hatch, she will take care of them on her own. She will sit with them in the nest for two days, and then lead them out sometime around day 3.

After this you have a choice. You can remove her and the chicks from the regular flock, and put her in a large cage (a big dog crate works well). Or you can build what would essentially be an upside down box on legs, about 2 inches off the ground (this can be DIYed easily). This means that the chicks can go underneath it and feed, but the adults cannot, as they should not have chick feed. Place medicated chick starter in a dish underneath this box, and be sure to raise the regular feeder for your other birds up high enough so the chicks cannot reach it, as laying feed is bad for them. When the hen takes her chicks outside, be sure to show them where the "feeding box" is, and scatter a little bit of it on the ground beneath the box.

The hen will care for the chicks for around 3 weeks, then allow them to fend for themselves.