Will the hen and chicks be ok?

[Rookie Raiser]

Hi, I have a silkie hen that likes to go broody, but usually only sits on one egg at a time. However, I went in the other day and she is sitting on almost 10!! I candled them and they are defiantly fertile (they have very noticeable veins and things). My problem is, I do not have anywhere to put the hen and the eggs, but she is only in with on little cochin hen and one tiny OEG rooster. Will she and the chicks be ok to stay with them or should I try to figure something else out?

 

[Ridgerunner]

Broody hens have been hatching chicks with the flock since long before they were domesticated. Bad thing scan happen if she hatches with the flock. Bad things can happen if you separate her. You are dealing with living animals so there are not guarantees but bad things normally do not happen either way. We do this all kinds of different ways.

You can set up a predator proof area with a nest and room for food and water and try to move her into that. Lock her in there so she cannot go back to her old nest and the other hens can’t get to her nest. It’s best to do that before you give her eggs so you see if she accepts the move or not, but many people are successful doing this even after they have the eggs.

I don’t know how big your Silkie is or how big those eggs are, hens and eggs come in all sizes, but she needs to be able to cover all the eggs. If they are the size she normally lays ten is a pretty good number. I normally go with a dozen.

If you let her hatch with the flock you need to mark the eggs you want her to hatch. I use a black Sharpie and make a couple of circles around each egg so I can tell at a glance which ones belong. Then once a day every day check under her to make sure no other eggs have shown up. If any do show up, remove them so the number doesn’t get so large she cannot cover all of them. As long as you remove them each and every day they are still good to use but don’t skip a day.

Good luck whichever way you go.