What's your record for number of chicks under a broody hen?

redbarnmeadows

In the Brooder
10 Years
Apr 27, 2009
56
2
41
Poland, NY
I have a Black Copper Marans hen who has been stubbornly refusing to break her broody mood for weeks and weeks. Normally I incubate, hatch and brood chicks artificially but this hen is really starting to lose weight, so I decided to appease her and give her chicks from my current hatch. Last night after dark I stuffed 6 newly hatched babies under her and this morning the chicks were fine and she was just as pleased as punch, so I grabbed the rest out of the hatcher and gave her those too. She currently has 17 and seems to be able to cover them just fine. There are still 3 or 4 yet to hatch in this batch and I'm wondering what may be her limit. (Don't worry, I've added a heat lamp over one side of her brooder box just in case she can't handle them all)

So, just out of curiosity, here's my question:

What's the highest number of chicks you've successfully been able to fit under a standard-sized chicken hen?
 
its dangerous to have over 10 chicks because when they get older they will be stepping on eachother to get closer to her or to get under her xD plus when they get older to the point where they walk around with her, she can only watch six so she may abandon some or they may get lost...
 
Thank you for your reply. I suppose I should clarify - They are all safely enclosed in a 3 x 3 covered brooder with a heat lamp pointed at one side so anybody who can't fit under her can still stay warm, yet it's not so hot that she is uncomfortable, and I'm monitoring the whole situation closely for any problems. So far everybody's very content and the chicks are happily exploring their surroundings and ducking under mom whenever they feel the need, and she is doing a stellar job of showing them the food and making sure she doesn't step on any of them, and she is finally eating too.

My primary objective is simply to break her of being broody. I only plan to let her keep them for a week or two, just to mentally redirect her since she was so stubborn about staying broody and I was concerned for her weight/health. She just needed a change of focus from her empty nest box and needed her motherhood itch scratched, lol. I plan to move them all to a bigger brooder (3 x 6) in 4 or 5 days and then move her out and back to her own breeding group in 1-1/2 to 2 weeks and then brood the chicks as per my normal routine after that. I hatch regularly and have a full setup for artificial brooding, so that's no problem.

I was just curious about other people's experiences with how many chicks they've had a standard-size hen be able to cover during the first week or so. Obviously as the chicks get bigger there are other issues, but I'm just talking about the first week.
 
This past spring, one of my hens raised 26 chicks (she's a standard Cochin). She and her twin sister shared a nest while they were sitting, and I gave them a dozen eggs each. Somehow a few more unauthorized eggs ended up under them and 26 hatched between them. At hatch, one of the Cochins decided she was done with the brooding business, and the other decided she would keep them all (and a couple of turkey poults that would occasionally loose their turkey mom and find their way to her). Anyway, she successfully raised every single one of them for 2 weeks in an XL dog crate. After those 2 weeks she started laying again, so I sold off the chicks as quickly as I could. But, she continued to brood the chicks and lay her eggs up until the very last chick was gone (which took about a week, Cochin babies are cute and they went pretty quick). I certainly didn't want her to end up with all of those fluffies, but she did and did a fantastic job of keeping them all alive. Good luck!
 
That's great! Wow, 26! My girl is up to 20 right now and there is still one pipping egg left in the hatcher, so we'll see if she ends up with 21.

Here she is, giving me the stink-eye, lol.


 
I found some pictures :D
Here are the two Cochin hens sharing their nest. The girl in front was a great incubator, she wasn't too thrilled about that cute little baby though. The hen in the back was the one that raised all of the chicks.
photobucket-10780-1337003080757.jpg

This is just after the eggs finished hatching and the other hen bolted
photobucket-26200-1337212139286.jpg

This is just after their move to the dog crate
photobucket-1270-1337977328065.jpg

I didn't even try to let her take them out with the flock, I figured there was no way she could keep up with them all.
 

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