Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[bobbieschicks]

Last egg was a dud. The chick stopped forming about day 14. So. With a 50% hactch. How much longer will she stay on the nest

Congrats!!! So every egg that was going to hatch has hatched at this point? Remove all duds and broken eggshells. Was the 50% on shipped eggs or your own eggs? I've had about 50% on shipped, sometimes less and way higher on my own eggs. Of course time of year matters as well. We get much higher %s in the spring/fall rather than summer/winter hatching.

If so she will start bringing the babies out once they have dried completely and she feels they are ready. Usually by the 2nd or 3rd day after hatching she's already moved them off the old nest and created a new nest nearby if you've given her room to move around. If you have an area to put some chick feed or scrambled eggs in there with them that would be good. I like to scatter the chick feed near the broody and the babies so they are forced to scratch it up. I put some in a small dish there as well. My broodies and their chicks love to get treats of dried mealworms and scrambled eggs on small plastic plates (served separately) in their first few days of life. They get a small dish of water with larger pebbles or marbles in it and momma will show them how to scratch up the mealys and scrambled eggs. If your weather is like ours today - alternating between rain and hail/sleet - she may choose to wait a day or two for better weather. Within a few days you won't need to provide her food & water - she should be able to get the babies out of the nest area and into the main coop.

 

[luvmychicken]

Last egg was a dud. The chick stopped forming about day 14. So. With a 50% hactch. How much longer will she stay on the nest

Congrats!!!  So every egg that was going to hatch has hatched at this point?  Remove all duds and broken eggshells. Was the 50% on shipped eggs or your own eggs?  I've had about 50% on shipped, sometimes less and way higher on my own eggs.  Of course time of year matters as well.  We get much higher %s in the spring/fall rather than summer/winter hatching.

If so she will start bringing the babies out once they have dried completely and she feels they are ready.  Usually by the 2nd or 3rd day after hatching she's already moved them off the old nest and created a new nest nearby if you've given her room to move around.  If you have an area to put some chick feed or scrambled eggs in there with them that would be good.  I like to scatter the chick feed near the broody and the babies so they are forced to scratch it up.  I put some in a small dish there as well.  My broodies and their chicks love to get treats of dried mealworms and scrambled eggs on small plastic plates (served separately) in their first few days of life.  They get a small dish of water with larger pebbles or marbles in it and momma will show them how to scratch up the mealys and scrambled eggs.  If your weather is like ours today - alternating between rain and hail/sleet - she may choose to wait a day or two for better weather.  Within a few days you won't need to provide her food & water - she should be able to get the babies out of the nest area and into the main coop.

She has food and water near by. The chicks have been eating and drinking. She has her own area in the hen house. 2 x 6 that she can move around but the other hens can't get to her or the chicks. Thought I would keep it like that for a while. My main run the chicks can get through the fencing. Next week I will be off so I can fix that problem.

 

[farmer boy]

i know this thread is not about ducks but i am just really excited i got my first duck egg today it is pretty big to

 

[lawatt]

hello -- i'm new to this thread, as i just started keeping chickens last summer, and now one of my silver pencilled plymouth rocks seems to be going broody -- so exciting!

however, i only have one coop (a henhouse with attached run, with three nesting boxes in the henhouse), and so am not sure where i could move her to, to separate her from the rest of the flock? is this absolutely necessary? I suppose i could go out & buy an additional small coop, but am concerned about how vulnerable it might be to predators (there are a lot around here, i live in a fairly wild area)...

in case it's useful, here's an image of the coop:



thanks for any suggestions you all might have!

 

[Johnn]

hello -- i'm new to this thread, as i just started keeping chickens last summer, and now one of my silver pencilled plymouth rocks seems to be going broody -- so exciting!

however, i only have one coop (a henhouse with attached run, with three nesting boxes in the henhouse), and so am not sure where i could move her to, to separate her from the rest of the flock? is this absolutely necessary? I suppose i could go out & buy an additional small coop, but am concerned about how vulnerable it might be to predators (there are a lot around here, i live in a fairly wild area)...

in case it's useful, here's an image of the coop:



thanks for any suggestions you all might have!

She might be able to happily sit in the nest box shes in, Bobbiechicks had a hen hatch out in with the rest of the flock (i think). you could put a cat carrier in the coop as her nest then let her out daily so she can go do her buisness

 

[lawatt]

She might be able to happily sit in the nest box shes in, Bobbiechicks had a hen hatch out in with the rest of the flock (i think). you could put a cat carrier in the coop as her nest then let her out daily so she can go do her buisness

thanks! she's currently in the middle box of three in that exterior-nesting-box thing -- but a cat carrier inside the coop is a good idea, i hadn't thought of that!

 

[lawatt]

thanks! she's currently in the middle box of three in that exterior-nesting-box thing -- but a cat carrier inside the coop is a good idea, i hadn't thought of that!

and apparently it was a false alarm, after sitting on her nest and growling for about six hours or so, she hopped off & hasn't been back on since. but perhaps this is a sign of impending broodiness?

 

[FirewifeJess]

Quote:
My broody did that 3 days in a row before finally deciding to sit for good. Could be happening soon! Also, your run is covered and you don't live in a cold climate, why don't you use a little bit of chicken wire in your run and make her an outside area, with just a rubbermaid bin tipped on its' side for shelter. That's what we did and all has worked beautifully. My chicks are now 12 days old and the big girls pay them no attention, even when the babies steal their treats. I let them out of their small area for about an hour each day right now, but all the chickens can see the broody and the chicks all the time, and vice versa. Let me find a picture.

 

[CoopChick719]

hello -- i'm new to this thread, as i just started keeping chickens last summer, and now one of my silver pencilled plymouth rocks seems to be going broody -- so exciting!

however, i only have one coop (a henhouse with attached run, with three nesting boxes in the henhouse), and so am not sure where i could move her to, to separate her from the rest of the flock? is this absolutely necessary? I suppose i could go out & buy an additional small coop, but am concerned about how vulnerable it might be to predators (there are a lot around here, i live in a fairly wild area)...

in case it's useful, here's an image of the coop:



thanks for any suggestions you all might have!

Hi Lawatt,

I am a newbie as well and my Sizzle just hatched 4 eggs in the coop with 4 other hens & 1 rooster. I had planned to enclose her within the coop but after listening to a few people on this thread, I just let her be. Everyone here is great! Very supportive!! There are no silly questions here...just ask away.

The chicks are 3 weeks old now. The bigger hens don't bother them too much. I have 2 that chase them a little bit. They haven't hurt them just squawked & ran after them...just enough to let them know who's running this show. The rooster protects the babies by stepping between them & the hens if he sees something going on. He will also chase 1 of the girls away from the babies. The other hen, his favorite BTW, he doesn't scold her at all! Today my daughter picked up one of the chicks (who started peeping like crazy) and the roo flew at her 2x which he has never done before. I picked him up & carried him around to let him know that was not alright. I had many people (friends, neighbors, co-workers say "You can't keep them in the coop with everyone else. They'll freeze. The roo will kill them." Well, Momma kept them warm. I also have a heat lamp in case someone was not covered enough by Mom. My roo protects them and chirps to them when he finds food then watches over them while they eat.

I am very fortunate to have one of the good ones!

 

[perchie.girl]

hello -- i'm new to this thread, as i just started keeping chickens last summer, and now one of my silver pencilled plymouth rocks seems to be going broody -- so exciting!

however, i only have one coop (a henhouse with attached run, with three nesting boxes in the henhouse), and so am not sure where i could move her to, to separate her from the rest of the flock? is this absolutely necessary? I suppose i could go out & buy an additional small coop, but am concerned about how vulnerable it might be to predators (there are a lot around here, i live in a fairly wild area)...

in case it's useful, here's an image of the coop:



thanks for any suggestions you all might have!

Nice coop. Once she hatches out her chicks she eventually will take them out of the coop to the floor. Just make a cozy spot on the ground for her to warm her chicks and settle for the night because sh most likely wont bring them back up the ramp. Like someone said. a useful thing to have is a dog crate. She may or may not use it but its a nice option give her a choice.

All my broodies Hatched in stealth mode in my yard. I was only able to confine one it didnt make a difference. the only reason I did was to keep other hens from adding to her clutch.

Good luck....

deb