Will he sit on eggs AND chicks?

[Ebony Rose]

I had a hen hatch half of her eggs, she then sat on the rest for a couple days, all the while having more and more chicks hatch. She then abandoned the nest. The eggtopsy (opening the egg and examining the contents with an eye towards an explanation of 'what went wrong') on the remaining, unhatched eggs found that they were either infertile or had perished during the incubation process. Chickens know. Not a single viable chick was left unhatched.
This same hen was gracious enough to accept all of the chicks that I had in the incubator while she was brooding too! (Was her first brooding, so had the incubator going simultaneously for 'just in case'. She's the proud mommy of 23 chicks. The chicks are about a week old now, and she's not lost a single one to predators or disease, and she had the chicks fully integrated into the flock by their third day.
Interesting side note: HER status rose dramatically in the pecking order of the flock after her chicks were born. Before she brooded the chicks, she was in the lower 1/3 in the pecking order, but now, she's strutting proud on morning walks beside the head rooster 'Big Daddy' with all of her chicks in tow. Big Daddy tidbits for her and the chicks.

God! I love having chicks and chickens!

 

[Ponypoor]

Good to know all this - thanks! My first time hatching, I have my hen on 4 eggs, her sister is real broody too, I have 'kept' her broody 'just in case' Henny decided motherhood wasn't for her hahaha. Today is day 20 and I hear cheeping from under her (none hatched yet! At least not since 7am this morning ha!). If I get a situation where some hatch and the others haven't I plan to place the remaining eggs under her sister.

I also have a brooder plate I can throw babies under for a day or so if Henny still has eggs. I like to have options

Stressful this hatching business! Henny seems far more relaxed than I am ha!

 

[OzarkChooks]

I've never let a broody hatch eggs before so it's all new to me. So far she has 4 chicks and she is still sitting on eggs. I don't know if I should move her so I can check the remaining eggs. I have a brooder set up in case I need to use it. I have to say, it's awfully cute watching the babies poke their heads out from under the hen!

 

[Ponypoor]

I've never let a broody hatch eggs before so it's all new to me. So far she has 4 chicks and she is still sitting on eggs. I don't know if I should move her so I can check the remaining eggs. I have a brooder set up in case I need to use it. I have to say, it's awfully cute watching the babies poke their heads out from under the hen!

Yes this hatching eggs is very stressful! Don't remember being this stress with the horses; though to be fair it's been 19 yrs since my last foal born, and come to think about it that one was a difficult birthing for a first time mare - so yep all this birthing business is stressful haha. That foal is now 19 and my best horse here

It's been amazing how this little hen of mine, I bought back in April so tiny at a week old, then laid her first egg, then a couple months later went all broody and now has 4 eggs under her, and might get a chick out of it all! This time last year I had no chickens

Now I have 10 of the suckers! My cousin decided my place was the Ritz so sent her 3 hens to stay, my niece sent some chicks she hatched for her class (hence the Rooster and thus the eggs, hopefully culminating in chicks!). My luck these eggs will all hatch out roosters

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

I've never let a broody hatch eggs before so it's all new to me. So far she has 4 chicks and she is still sitting on eggs. I don't know if I should move her so I can check the remaining eggs. I have a brooder set up in case I need to use it. I have to say, it's awfully cute watching the babies poke their heads out from under the hen!

Yes, few things are cuter then a broody hen with babies!

 

[Ebony Rose]

...My luck these eggs will all hatch out roosters

You can usually tell cockerels pretty young, their waddles pink up pretty quick. My strategy is to name all quick-to-waddle chicks with unisex names or variations of the names of food/meals; A La King, McNugget, Nugget, Kay Ef Cee, Drumstick, White Meat, Dark Meat, Dinner, Omelet etc. I tend to wait for female chicks to get close to the point of lay before naming them so that I can select a name that suits her looks or personality. By naming your strongly suspected males in this way, even if you have children, you can constantly remind yourself (and the kids) that most, if not all, male chickens become food for both your family and your pets.
My chickens and I have a bargain, I give them a wonderful life on a fully fenced half acre that they have total access to, with a bottomless tub of fresh and nutritious feed available all day, every day and occasional treats and they give me food... sometimes that's eggs, sometimes that's meat.
You can love your chickens, giving them a rich, pleasant life AND enjoy the meat that they can put on your table.

 

[Ponypoor]

You can usually tell cockerels pretty young, their waddles pink up pretty quick. My strategy is to name all quick-to-waddle chicks with unisex names or variations of the names of food/meals; A La King, McNugget, Nugget, Kay Ef Cee, Drumstick, White Meat, Dark Meat, Dinner, Omelet etc. I tend to wait for female chicks to get close to the point of lay before naming them so that I can select a name that suits her looks or personality. By naming your strongly suspected males in this way, even if you have children, you can constantly remind yourself (and the kids) that most, if not all, male chickens become food for both your family and your pets.
My chickens and I have a bargain, I give them a wonderful life on a fully fenced half acre that they have total access to, with a bottomless tub of fresh and nutritious feed available all day, every day and occasional treats and they give me food... sometimes that's eggs, sometimes that's meat.
You can love your chickens, giving them a rich, pleasant life AND enjoy the meat that they can put on your table.

I optimistically named my on Silkie Roxanne L'oeuf, the other was Stanley Stallion Chicken (I was certain he was a rooster) as I was very certain it was a hen, then she crowed hahaha! Tried to call him Rocky but Roxanne stuck hahaha.

My other three I named Fluffy McNugget, Curly McNugget (she is a frizzle), and again optimistically Henny-Penny McNugget - very glad she is a she! In fact these three silkies all turned out to be hens

I think throwing Silkies in the freezer is not likely they are so small and boney haha - but I regularly threaten my rooster he would be dinner. He is a good boy though, so my threats are for naught hahaha!