What to do if my hen doesn't get up even if her eggs hatched...

[Katie3]

So this is my first time having a broody hen.. and well honestly i'm having a hard time with the broody hen. She doesn't want to get up to eat, drink, or anything, so i'm helping her to get up so i usually get her up 2 times a day. i'm mean that's no problem but its stressing to do. But now my concern is that her chicks are about to hatch and its worries me to know that shes doesn't even want to get up or anything i have to be there to do it all! I want someone to help me to see what I could do if she doesn't get up even when her baby chicks are born. I need her to get up I don't want to keep doing this even when her baby chicks are born. ANY ADVISE?

 

[Ridgerunner]

Broody hens have been doing this for thousands of years without human help. My advice is let her handle it. Quit stressing out about it.

A hen stores up a lot of extra fat before she even starts to lay. When she goes broody, she pretty much lives off of that stored fat. She still needs to get up to eat, drink, and go poop, but she often does that in secret. Her instinct is to hide the nest and not lead predators to it. You often don't see her get up but if he is not pooping in the nest, she is getting up.

When the eggs internal pip the hen and chicks start talking each other. Once that starts she should not leave the nest until the hatch is over and she takes the chicks off the nest or find food and water for them. Your job is to have food and water where th echicks can get to it when she takes them off the nest. That's it. Relax and let the hen do the heavy work.

 

[DaveOmak]

Chickens usually know what to do.... Put some high protein feed for her like scrambled eggs and some cold water with nutritional supplements added.... there's a name for it... but... it evades me.... dehydration this time of year is something that needs watching... also the high protein food because they reduce their food intake in the heat....

If you would put "where you live" in you profile, answering questions would be easier......

 

[Katie3]

Thank you for that advice It helps me a lot knowing that.
but what if she already been broody and it was almost the due date for the eggs to hatch and she ate every egg and i know that for a fact is because I saw her getting out of the nest and eating them. So i had to take her away from the nest. She stopped being broody for a while but all of a sudden she became broody once again. So I let her be and know she doesn't want to get up at all not even to stretch a little. So that's when I come and help her get up but from there on I haven't seen her move a muscle. And to be honest I don't want to take her out of the nest anymore is because the eggs are about to hatch, so if i take her out its just a waste of time. So I don't want her to abandon her chicks so i keep helping her up.

What should I do if she doesn't get up to even feed the chicks? Do i keep doing what I'm doing even when the chicks hatch??

 

[DaveOmak]

Thank you for that advice

It helps me a lot knowing that.
but what if she already been broody and it was almost the due date for the eggs to hatch and she ate every egg and i know that for a fact is because I saw her getting out of the nest and eating them. So i had to take her away from the nest. She stopped being broody for a while but all of a sudden she became broody once again. So I let her be and know she doesn't want to get up at all not even to stretch a little. So that's when I come and help her get up but from there on I haven't seen her move a muscle. And to be honest I don't want to take her out of the nest anymore is because the eggs are about to hatch, so if i take her out its just a waste of time. So I don't want her to abandon her chicks so i keep helping her up.

What should I do if she doesn't get up to even feed the chicks? Do i keep doing what I'm doing even when the chicks hatch??

How about supplying ALL the information .....
Were there any chicks in the eggs she was eating.... were they viable or dead or no chicks...
Do you have a rooster.....
Maybe you should get an incubator and save yourself some stress......