What to do Broody hen if no chicks hatch?

[traco]

Does a broody hen leave the nest if no chicks hatch? My girl will be 21 days this Saturday. We put the eggs under her on April 7. Three eggs left ... One we are pretty sure is a chick, one looks like there is a thick blood ring and the third has an air sac but the dark mass is not large and everything moves freely in the egg (it does have an air sac though?).

Being new to all this, will she get off the nest if they don't hatch? Would it work if we slipped some newborn chicks under her ... that is ... if I can find newborn ones right away? Or best just to do nothing?

 

[venymae]

Wait for the one viable chick, and hopefully scout a couple sources of new chicks just in case. Yes, you can sneak chicks under.

 

[Morrigan]

+1 to what venymae said. If the one chick doesn't hatch, you can try to put some chicks under her. It's best if the chicks are less than a week old, and the chicks placed under her a night.

 

[ibrahimzuberi]

My girl is sitting on 10 eggs but I lost the count of days, its her first time so i am not sure even a single egg hatch, so I have same question if she leaves the nest or keep sitting on the eggs? second I dont like to put new born chicks under her because if she failed completely this time and I put new chicks she will not leave the chicks and take longer time to lay eggs again.

 

[traco]

Day 21 today. Two eggs left. One has liquid in the air sac area ... not viable I'm thinking? Second one has an air sac (1" size roughly) but by now, wouldn't the chick be taking up all the room in the egg by now?

Would you say this has been a bust for live chicks hatching? They were a batch of eggs from my g/f so no guarantee for fertilization, although she has three roosters and around 20 hens.

Lastly, if I do find some new chicks, slip them under tomorrow night? If I don't find any, she will stop being broody soon and go back to flock?