Psalms 118:23
This is the Lord's doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.
Tale of a Broody Hen:
My First Experience Hatching Under a Broody Hen
When two of my year-old Buff Orpington's went broody this year, I was thrilled, but terrified. I knew right away that I wanted to let them hatch chicks, but I wasn't sure at all what to do in the process. All the hatching experience I had was from using an incubator, not hens, and I didn't have that much experience even with hatching with an incubator.
When you're using an incubator to hatch chicks, you can, for the most part, control the whole process. You decide the temperature, the humidity, the location, you can even pick the timing so they hatch when it's most convenient for you.
When you're hatching under a broody hen, you have no control over it. You don't generally pick the location, you don't pick the timing, you don't pick the hen that goes broody, you have no control over the humidity or the temperature, you don't decide if she stays put for the whole time or if she gets up and decides she's over it, you don't decide if she's going to be a good mom and take good care of her babies or if she's going to reject them, and you don't get to pick the timing. You decide pretty much nothing. Hence the reason it can be terrifying.
But, regardless, I made it through without much difficulty. It was definitely a major learning experience and one that I valued greatly! It was a lot of fun and it's something that I hope you will get to experience and enjoy just as much as I did.
In hopes of helping someone else through the process of hatching under their broody girl, I'm doing a blog post to tell you about the whole experience from beginning to end. I've added notes throughout to give you a "heads up" on things that I should've or could've done differently that would've worked out better.
So here goes:
During the spring season, 5:00 is the "magic" time of day for us to finish collecting eggs. By 5:00 p.m., everyone is finished laying and it's safe to make that final trip to the coops to collect the last egg or two and call it a day.
On the day before Mother's Day, I went out at about 5:07 p.m. to collect eggs and found two of my year-old Buff Orpington hens still on nests in the coop. I thought it was strange, initially, but dismissed it thinking maybe they were running a little late (ladies do tend to do that from time to time, right?) or maybe they were a little "off" because of all the rain we had had over the past couple of days. I mean, it was just barely after 5:00, so I'd just check back later.
At 8:00 p.m., I told my husband I was going to go collect the final two eggs of the day. Since there were two girls on nests, I assumed there would be two eggs to collect. To my surprise, the hens were still on the nests. That's when the red flag went up. The other girls were winding down for the evening, some already going in to roost for the night, and these two were still on their nests. So, I went back into the house, empty-handed, to tell my husband that we might have, not one, but two broody hens.
Around 10:30 p.m., I checked again. It was well after dark at that point, so they should be roosting. Nope. There they sat, still on their nests.
I stroked the tail of the first one to see how she reacted. She stood to readjust her position, allowing me to see the single egg she had under her, then she settled back down.
 |
| Discovering our first broody hen |
I attempted to stroke the tail of the second one (named Lucy), but she fluffed up and gave me the infamous Velociraptor growl and then began to peck at my hand, not stopping when I drew my hand back. Pretty intimidated, I made a mental note to not mess with the girls, especially Lucy, while they were on their nests for fear of losing a finger....or a hand.
The next morning, Mother's Day, I went out to check on the girls while everyone was getting ready for church. Sure enough, they were still on their nests. The not-so-grumpy-one did get up a little later, but she wasn't up long and had returned to the nest before we left for church. While she was up, I took the eggs out of her nest.
Then that evening, Lucy got up and I was able to take the egg from her nest as well. A little while later, the Rhode Island Reds laid eggs in the nesting boxes. I wasn't able to take the egg out of Lucy's nest before she returned.
At that point, I could tell it was going to be a job trying to keep eggs out of the nesting boxes. I wanted to wait a few days and see if the girls were totally committed to setting before I gave them any fertile eggs to hatch, but taking the eggs out of the nesting boxes while the girls were in there could cost me my life, especially with that ferocious beast, Lucy, on the eggs. I'd settle for waiting to take the eggs when they were off their nests, but, even at that, they were only getting up once or twice a day for short intervals, so I may not catch them when they were up and there may be another chicken on the nest when the broody was up. It was so much to juggle!
Between Sunday and Monday, I collected a total of 4 eggs, a number much lower than what I normally collect. Not good!
I wasn't at all sure why the other girls weren't laying. Only 2 of the 10 hens were broody. That left 8 hens to lay eggs each day. It's not abnormal for one or two to take a day off each day, but for 6 to take days off for 2 days in a row? Something had to be going on.
With the other hens on strike from laying eggs, I'd have to find fertile eggs elsewhere for my broody girls to hatch. I spent Sunday and Monday researching "How to Hatch Eggs Under a Broody Hen" and reaching out to local farms in search of fertile eggs from breeds that I might like to hatch.
Monday was much the same with the girls. I tried to catch the broody's when they were off the nests so that I could collect any eggs that might have been laid. The not-so-grumpy one got up twice and Lucy didn't get up at all, or, at least, none that I saw. So, the task of keeping the eggs out from under them was really a chore.
I also tested Lucy on Monday to see if she would be accepting of eggs placing in her nest. I took a golf ball and placed it in the front of her nest, quickly so that she didn't peck me. I was a little discouraged when she ignored the ball as I sat watching and waiting. But, later, when I returned to check on her, the ball had disappeared underneath her. Perfect!
On Tuesday, I drove over to the next county to buy some fertile eggs since my stubborn girls decided to quit laying on account of the broody's. I got a dozen from their farm and had another 7 from my own hens.
I got the eggs home, carefully wiped off the dirt and hay off of them and divided them into separate cartons so that I knew which ones would go under which hen. One hen would get 10 eggs, the other would get 9.
The not-so-grumpy girl was off of her nest when I took the eggs out to the coop, so it wasn't difficult to place the eggs in the nest for her. She would simply return to the nest and have a nice clutch of 9 eggs waiting on her.
Lucy was, of course, on her nest so it wasn't so easy giving her eggs. But, given that she passed the little golf ball test the day before, I was hopeful that she would accept the eggs I brought to her.
I placed one egg in the nest. She tried to peck my hand and pecked the egg instead. Fortunately, she didn't do any damage to the egg and I was able to leave it for her. I left her for a minute and when I peeked in at her again, the egg had disappeared. Wonderful! I repeated the process, giving her one egg at a time at first, then two eggs at a time, and finally giving her 3 eggs at a time. Each time, I left her for a few minutes to tuck the eggs away and each time she settled the eggs comfortably in place under her fluffy self.
To keep my hand from getting pecked, I wedged a plastic bucket lid in her nest to make sort of a slanted wall between my hand and her body. The edge of the lid rested on the nest close to her. This way, I was able to place the eggs next to her without her pecking me.
She had a hard time with 2 of the eggs. They had rolled too close to the edge of the nest and were sitting against the very side of the nesting box and she couldn't get them away from the side. So I took a long stick and rolled them to a place where she could get them and try to tuck them under her. She also had 2 golf balls under her and I worried she wouldn't have room for all the eggs plus the golf balls. I hoped she'd get off the nest soon so I could get the golf balls out from under her.
When the not-so-grumpy hen returned to the nest full of eggs, she apparently decided she'd brood in the next nest over. So, I had to repeat the process that I had just went through with Lucy. I gave the not-so-grumpy hen a couple eggs at a time until she got them tucked under her body. Funny thing though, once she got her eggs, she became grumpy too. Growling and puffing up at me and even pecking at me when I tried to help her push the eggs under her.
**Note: I now take the eggs and tuck them under the hen myself instead of letting the broody hen do it. I haven't had any issues with the broody accepting the eggs and I now feel that it is an unnecessary step to give the eggs to the broody and wait for her to tuck them in place.
Soon after, I discovered why the other hens had stopped laying. When the not-so-grumpy hen was off of her nest, she paced back and forth in front of the nesting boxes. When another hen would go over close to the nesting boxes, the not-so-grumpy hen would peck the "intruder" and run her back outside.
At this point, only a few days into my first broody experience, I felt like everything was going crazy. I was worried that Lucy wouldn't properly incubate all of her eggs because of the two golf balls she was on and I was too chicken to stick my hand under her and get them myself. The other hens weren't laying because of the not-so-grumpy broody. I was definitely beginning to realize just how eventful this next three weeks was going to be.
I got three buckets and put them on their sides in the coop on a wall away from the built-in nesting boxes where the broody's were at. I put some shavings in them and some golf balls. I crossed my fingers and hoped this would get the other hens to start laying again.
I finally decided I was just going to have to get brave and let the Velociraptor peck me so I could see just how bad it was going to hurt. There was no way I could keep avoiding it. I had to push her eggs under her at times when one was poking out. I had to give her treats. I had to check under her to make sure that no other hens had laid eggs in her nest while she was up.
So, I gathered all the nerve I had and went on my mission. I stuck my hand in her nest in clear view and let her peck me. I couldn't believe I had been so petrified. It didn't even hurt at all. It wasn't even enough to be considered a peck. It wasn't even a pinch. It was more of just a nudge with her beak. After that, I wasn't worried one bit about being pecked by my broody hens.
**Note: If you have a hateful broody hen, I strongly recommend just letting her peck you. If you're going to keep an eye on her and keep a check on the eggs, you're going to get pecked anyway. So just do it and be done with it so at least you know what to expect when it happens.
The makeshift bucket nesting boxes that I had put in for the girls were going ignored. They still weren't laying eggs anywhere. I was completely at a loss on what I could do to get them to start laying again.
Four days after I gave the girls their eggs, I decided to move the girls to their own coop, which I called the Maternity Ward. This would keep the other hens from laying eggs in the nesting boxes that the broody's were in and I hoped it would help the other girls to start laying eggs again.
My husband took out the roosting perch in one of the breeding pens and added a second nesting box in it's place. That night, I got the coop set up and ready for the girls. I put chick feed and water in and put pine shavings in the nesting boxes. Then I started the move. First the eggs, then the hens.
I moved Lucy first. Once on her nest, she got up, got some water and went right back to her nest and settled in. It was looking good!
 |
| Lucy in her new nest in the Maternity Ward Pen. |
I moved the not-so-grumpy broody next. The second that I put her in her nest, she got straight up. She roamed around inside the coop, went to the doorway that led to the enclosed run, came back in, she went everywhere. I caught her and sat her back on her nest three times, each time she would fight and jump back down. I finally gave up and assumed she was "broken". I tucked 3 of her eggs under the grumpy broody and left the rest. The not-so-grumpy broody slept on the floor in the doorway that night. She never did return to her eggs.
**Note: I now leave the broody hens to set in with the laying hens. I move them to the Maternity Ward once the chicks have hatched or have begun hatching. I've found the broody hens are less likely to abandon their nests this way. Although, I haven't had another incident where the rest of the hens stop laying on account of the broody hens either. If the rest of the hens stopped laying again on account of a broody hen, I would likely move the broody to the Maternity Ward pen again.
The next day, I sent my incubator and all my incubating equipment home with my niece along with the six eggs that the broody had abandoned and then I returned the broken broody to the coop with the rest of the flock and left Lucy alone with her clutch.
**Note: I don't recommend letting two hens brood at the same time, especially if their hatch dates are close together. As a "rookie", I thought it was adorable and so sweet that these sisters would hatch babies together. When two of my other hens went broody later on, they hatched on the same day and, after a few days, the moms began fighting over the babies because each mom thought all the babies were hers. Fortunately, there were only ten chicks between these two moms, so, since one hen was able to handle all ten of the chicks, I removed the second hen and put her back into the Layers Pen. If you let two brood at the same time, make sure you have a solid back-up plan just in case.
Lucy did well. The time seemed to fly by far faster than it did when I hatched using an incubator. I candled the eggs and marked the air cells on Days 7, 14, and 18 just as I would when hatching them in an incubator.
On Day 11, I removed the eggs that had either quit developing or never started. This left Lucy with 8 eggs.
Lucy continued to set day in and day out. She got off the nest every day or two to stretch her legs, poop, dust bathe, eat, and drink.
I visited her daily. I picked up the small chick drinker that I had put in the Maternity Ward for her and the babies and took it to her in the nesting box so she could get some water each time I visited her. I took her treats, tomatoes, watermelon, meal worms, corn, green beans, carrots, and peas. Each time, she would fluff up at me and growl ferociously as she gently pecked the food out of my hand.
 |
| Lucy drinking from the chick drinker while setting. |
The last week of incubation was hot with temperatures hovering around 100 degrees and high humidity. I worried that the temperature and humidity might affect the development of the eggs, but I also worried my poor Lucy would begin to suffer from the heat. I checked on her several times a day, always offering her water and hydrating snacks. She did well and never showed any sign of being bothered by the heat.
**Note: The mother hen not only keeps the eggs warm with her body, she also insulates them from the heat. It's fascinating how they were created to do this!
On Day 18, I candled the eggs for the final time. I marked the air cells, checked for internal pips (there was none) and then tucked the eggs back under Lucy.
On the morning of Day 20, I went out to check on Lucy and when I lifted her body slightly with my hand so that I could see the eggs, I saw a strange ball of fluff at her tail end that looked like her own downy feathers. When I lifted her further, I could see it was a sweet little white chick. Oh, how I wanted to grab that little baby and snuggle it. I left it be though, knowing that the best place for it was under Mom. A quick glance revealed that at least one more chick had pipped.
 |
| The first baby is hatched. Lucy is officially a Mom! |
No more chicks hatched on Day 20.
On Day 21, the rest of the chicks hatched with the exception of one lone egg that hadn't even pipped yet. I checked on them throughout the day to make sure Lucy was behaving and taking proper care of her babies. The nest box was also about 8 or 9 inches off of the coop floor, so I wanted to make sure none of the babies had fallen out of the nest, unable to get back in with Mom. The babies stayed snuggled underneath Lucy, only occasionally peeking out.
 |
| Babies, babies! |
**Note: A nest box on the floor or the absence of a nest box entirely would be more ideal. This would take away the concern of chicks falling out and being unable to get back into the nesting box.
On the morning of Day 22, the last egg hatched. The other chicks were beginning to run around Lucy in the nesting box, with the lone white chick being the most adventurous...surely a rooster, I thought.
I don't know how she was able to get the chicks out of the nesting box. Maybe they jumped out on their own to follow her. I really don't know. But either way, on Day 22, they were all outside. 7 black chicks and one white....Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, my friend dubbed them.
Lucy showed her babies how to scratch the ground for food, eating grass and bugs. In the process of scratching, she sometimes got a chick under her foot and scratched it away with the dirt.
I scrambled a couple of eggs and sprinkled them on the ground for Lucy and her clutch. She made a clicking sound to let the babies know that this was food and they all scurried to eat it. I was really surprised by how fast they could run! The whole process was so fascinating to watch.
 |
| Eating scrambled eggs with Mom |
We held the chicks for extremely short periods, but Lucy wasn't happy about it at all so we didn't hold them often so that we didn't stress her out. She still fluffed up and growled at us, dropping her wings to show she was extremely unhappy about her babies being messed with. I wouldn't let the boys go visit without me for fear of mama hen hurting them. She was a very attentive and protective mother.
Lucy made a place in the floor of the Maternity Ward coop where she and her babies slept at night for the first week or so. Once the chicks were able to fly, which was really quickly, she moved them to the nesting box where they had hatched and they all slept there.
**Note: I didn't realize then that a broody hen will teach her babies to roost at night. A roosting perch inside the Maternity Ward coop is a good idea. The broody hen won't use it while she setting, but she will use it with her chicks once they are old enough to learn to roost.
A broody hen, from what I understand, will brood her clutch until about 6 weeks old. Lucy didn't brood that long.
When the chicks were about 3 weeks old, I noticed her pacing back and forth around the door and side of the Maternity Ward run. As I watched, I noticed she would occasionally peck her chicks. It was as if she were trying to keep them at a distance away from her
At first I was really concerned about her behavior. But before I thought too much of it, I did some research online to see what was going on. Turns out, this is normal behavior for a broody hen who has "weaned" her babies.
That afternoon, I found an egg in the Maternity Ward pen nesting box and it was confirmed. Lucy was ready to return to the coop with the rest of the laying hens.
Since Lucy returned to the layers coop, the chicks have continued to do really well. The little white chick did end up being a rooster, as I had first thought. I've had more broody hens since this and it gets a little easier each time as I learn more and more from them.
So that's the story of how my first broody experience went and some of the lessons that I learned from it. I hope it will help you with your broody hens.
Good luck and happy hatching!
Comments
Post a Comment