Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[KrystalRose]

Is it better to introduce foster kids like an hour after everyone is asleep and it is completely dark, or an hour or two before daylight? Or does it not matter?

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Is it better to introduce foster kids like an hour after everyone is asleep and it is completely dark, or an hour or two before daylight? Or does it not matter?

I've done both...depends on the hen.

If the hen is amiable, then I like to do it as soon as I get the fosters to avoid additional transition stress and take advantage of the warmer daylight hours if it is cooler weather. That also gives me some daylight to replace stupid chicks under the hen when they wander (sorry...I am becoming convinced that heat brooding does something to their little brains so they don't stay with the hen, like normal hatched chicks ...or maybe it is the shipping trip from midwest to Oregon...bumping over the Rockies and Cascades at high altitude that deprives them from oxygen.

The advantage to after dark is that many hens accept fosters better then, and the chicks can tend to settle faster...just to wander at day break, in my case.

All to say...place when you feel it is best and watch for your hen who is the most important factor...then watch some more.

Hopefully your fosters are brighter than mine tend to be. It just takes persistence, and they finally stick...if they haven't cold stressed so much that it weakens their immunity (the second issue I have).

I LOVE my hatchlings...they hatch in cold weather and never have any issues. Fosters...meh. I have to WORK with those.

Lady of McCamley

 

[KrystalRose]

I agree, after having a natural mama hatching and having her look after her own young, it is way easier! Plus those chicks are super smart! Problem is, she is starting to get antsy in the brooder box, the oldest chick is only a week old today, wonder how much longer I can keep her in there to let the chicks grow before I put them in the main coop? I am hoping for at least another week.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

I agree, after having a natural mama hatching and having her look after her own young, it is way easier! Plus those chicks are super smart! Problem is, she is starting to get antsy in the brooder box, the oldest chick is only a week old today, wonder how much longer I can keep her in there to let the chicks grow before I put them in the main coop? I am hoping for at least another week.

Introduction to the flock totally depends on your hen and your flock as well as general environment (like hawk predators who love to pick off the smaller fry).

Some introduce now, and have really good results. Those tend to be with laid back flocks and an assertive broody that generally was at the higher end of the pecking order and with safe environments.

I use banties, which get no respect from the LF flock, and have terrible hawk problems, so I have additional integration issues such that I keep a separate broody hutch and run and introduce when the chicks are much older and can integrate directly into the flock....always in at least a pair (hence the purchase of a foster buddy to my lonely only single hatchling.)

Was able to keep foster and Mum together throughout the afternoon...hopefully it was a silly chick that just got out and not a true wanderer...why on EARTH it had to squeeeeeeze itself through the partition to the other side so that it could fall out of the open right hutch side, I'll never understand...food, water and warmth were all the opposite way. Which is why I wonder if the artificial lighting and packaging/shipping process does interrupt some natural instincts as my hatchlings NEVER do that...not until they are more "toddlers/preschoolers" and stepping out to investigate the world.

Good luck with integration...as always...try what you think best and have a plan B, or C.

LofMc

 

[KrystalRose]

Maybe without a mom to yell DANGER the chicks never learn to sense what could be dangerous, like wandering away. I let my last batch of chicks out into my run at 3 weeks since they were my only chickens at the time, somehow they figured out the perfect spot to stand, jump and tuck their wings, and fit through the 2x4 openings in the horse fence that surrounds the run. By the time I caught them, they had formed a line and the first 5 were through. I had chicken wire 1 foot up the fence at that point, needless to say I had to add a couple more feet of chicken wire. Just to prove they aren't stupid, just lacking a sense of danger.

Here goes a long night of checking up on them, as I am about to sneak them in with foster mom. Wish me luck!

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Maybe without a mom to yell DANGER the chicks never learn to sense what could be dangerous, like wandering away. I let my last batch of chicks out into my run at 3 weeks since they were my only chickens at the time, somehow they figured out the perfect spot to stand, jump and tuck their wings, and fit through the 2x4 openings in the horse fence that surrounds the run. By the time I caught them, they had formed a line and the first 5 were through. I had chicken wire 1 foot up the fence at that point, needless to say I had to add a couple more feet of chicken wire. Just to prove they aren't stupid, just lacking a sense of danger.

Here goes a long night of checking up on them, as I am about to sneak them in with foster mom. Wish me luck!

Good luck!
LofMc

....and very true about the sense of danger...I don't think the artificial hatchers get the "skinny" from mom early on and simply do not understand how to stay safe...the worst "stupid chick" tricks have all been pulled by artificial brooded chicks....come to think of it...while my hatchlings will push through a small hole in the fence, they are running back to mom frantically (they can just never seem to find the same hole to get back into...well...wait... a couple of them did that too when mom called and kept looking until they could get back to her).

Yeah...I think it is a foster thing...something to be said for natural brooding...helps your chicks learn stranger danger and stick with the flock!

 

[KrystalRose]

Ok, so I put them out with foster mom, it was very thankfully uneventful. She pecked lightly at me once for messing with her. But after sitting in the room for about 45 minutes the chicks stayed under mom, mom made room by lifting her bum when they wanted to move around they eventually quit peeping much at all, I think they fell asleep. Other than that mom didn't budge an inch. It is very dark in there right now with just barely enough ambient light for me to see. I will continue to check on them every once in a while tonight to make sure no drama happens. But at this point I think my biggest fear is a chick getting out from under mom and not knowing to get back under. (**** heat lamp children!) Hopefully I can give you a nice family photo tomorrow! Fingers crossed.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Ok, so I put them out with foster mom, it was very thankfully uneventful. She pecked lightly at me once for messing with her. But after sitting in the room for about 45 minutes the chicks stayed under mom, mom made room by lifting her bum when they wanted to move around they eventually quit peeping much at all, I think they fell asleep. Other than that mom didn't budge an inch. It is very dark in there right now with just barely enough ambient light for me to see. I will continue to check on them every once in a while tonight to make sure no drama happens. But at this point I think my biggest fear is a chick getting out from under mom and not knowing to get back under. (**** heat lamp children!) Hopefully I can give you a nice family photo tomorrow! Fingers crossed.

Good start...tonight will likely be uneventful...it is the following day that I get wandering when the daylight is tempting.
LofMc

 

[FL Crowing Hen]

Thanks! I reached out to some local chicken enthusiasts and found someone with incubated eggs that are scheduled to hatch around the same time as mine. I will plan on picking up at least 2-3 chicks to put under my hen so she can have more than just one.

OK, one of the three eggs hatched sometime during the night. Later today, I am picking up three fosters that hatched yesterday.

I am pretty sure that the other two eggs are duds and will not hatch, but they are dark brown eggs from Maran mixes. Since this is my first time hatching chicks with a broody or an incubator, I don't quite trust my judgement on the viability of those eggs. How long should I wait before giving up on those two eggs? Mama is still sitting tight, which will make it easier for me to introduce the fosters.

You can see the chick poking out from Mama on the left side.

 

[ochochicas]

My Marans eggs typically pip/hatch 12 - 24 hours after the others. I'd give them the rest of today to see if they will hatch. If they have not pipped by the time you put the foster chicks under the hen then it is probably time to remove them. You can leave them one more night and then take them out in the morning. Just my opinion. If you have a strong flashlight you could try to candle them. If all you can see is an air cell at one end, you'll know they are fully developed. If you can see light in the whole egg or black blobs, you'll know it is time to toss them.