YO GEORGIANS! :)

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Prinette said:
I know you guys have ducks and what not and I was wondering how you guys felt about hatching under broody chickens? I have almost no success with incubators and I feel like it would be easier with them. Does the humidity for chickens and ducks vary that much? Would it be okay for me to let a silkie take over?

Also does anyone have any silkies they would like to sell? Hatching eggs or chicks. I don't care about color or anything as long as they are healthy.
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I've actually heard plenty of success stories with people hatching out ducks and geese with broody chickens. As a matter of fact, when I got my sebastopol eggs, for a split second I thought about putting them under the one broody hen I had at the time. But she was a bantam, and putting even a single goose egg under her would have been laughable - just imagining her trying to balance on it!

I do know going the other way around can be dangerous, because ducks and geese want to get in the water, and chicks can't swim very well. And I've heard one person mention their chicken momma went crazy when her BABIES got into the pond. But otherwise, they should be fine. I don't have any source of water here except little swimming pools meant just for the waterfowl. So if I ever trusted one to brood the other, I doubt I would have any issues at all.
 
carcar80 said:
And do I give the hay first? Or the eggs? lol
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Both. Toss her out of the nest, then put some hay in it, and kinda shape it like a bowl. Then put the eggs (fake eggs) in, and introduce her back to the nest. Being a hen, she'll almost definitely jump in and "test" it out either way. After dark, go outside with a flashlight, and see if she's still sitting in the nest. Tomorrow night, check it again.
 
OK, add me to the Gerogians list.
On a sad note, this morning I found our youngest (15 mo.) hen dead in the floor of the coop under the roost. Not a mark on her, not a single feather disturbed, her head under her wing. I am sure she resumed laying this spring, she never laid daily, she laid sporadically. She was also at the bottom of the peck and was bullied by the older Red one, thou she got her feed she was a heavy meaty hen. Last week I noticed that something, just wasn't right with her ( the youngest), normally she was very social with me. The feathers around her eyes were thinning so I wrote the different behavior off to her first molt. When the others went into the first molt, the Black wanted to be left alone to herself. Anyhow, I don't know what to think, with a predator there is no doubt as to cause. The other two seem fine behaving normally (like puppies, not chickens).
idunno.gif
 
ChickDancer said:
I've actually heard plenty of success stories with people hatching out ducks and geese with broody chickens. As a matter of fact, when I got my sebastopol eggs, for a split second I thought about putting them under the one broody hen I had at the time. But she was a bantam, and putting even a single goose egg under her would have been laughable - just imagining her trying to balance on it!

I do know going the other way around can be dangerous, because ducks and geese want to get in the water, and chicks can't swim very well. And I've heard one person mention their chicken momma went crazy when her BABIES got into the pond. But otherwise, they should be fine. I don't have any source of water here except little swimming pools meant just for the waterfowl. So if I ever trusted one to brood the other, I doubt I would have any issues at all.
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That's really good news. I was looking at making a cooler incubator but I don't have the skills to do something like that. What type of hens would you suggest to get for hatching? All our chickens are bantams except for the black sex-links and broilers and they haven't gone broody in the three years since we bought them.
 
Prinette said:
That's really good news. I was looking at making a cooler incubator but I don't have the skills to do something like that. What type of hens would you suggest to get for hatching? All our chickens are bantams except for the black sex-links and broilers and they haven't gone broody in the three years since we bought them. 
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sex links are bred for egg production and the broodiness has been bred out. Broilers usually don't live long enough and also aren't bred for broodiness. Basically any type of hen bred for egg production won't go broody, some still will but most of the time not.... someone correct me if I'm wrong anywhere here
 
First off, welcome! I'm pretty close to you. :) Secondly, sorry for your loss, its always hard to lose a hen.
 
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JennaLynn122 said:
sex links are bred for egg production and the broodiness has been bred out. Broilers usually don't live long enough and also aren't bred for broodiness. Basically any type of hen bred for egg production won't go broody, some still will but most of the time not.... someone correct me if I'm wrong anywhere here
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The only one I know to use for brooding are silkies but my friends hatch was a bust and now I can't find anyone to sell me a few girls.
 
Prinette said:
The only one I know to use for brooding are silkies but my friends hatch was a bust and now I can't find anyone to sell me a few girls. 
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I've never had silkies but ive read on here that they are champs at brooding. Also seen quite a few people with broody buff orps and various other bantams. I have mainly more production breeds so I don't get broodys
 

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