How To Hatch Chicks Under a Broody Hen

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is heaven.  Matthew 5:16



I've done posts about how to tell if your hen is broody and about my personal experience with hatching under a broody for the first time, so I figured a detailed "how to" would be a good next step.

This is my personal view on how to hatch eggs au naturel using a broody hen.  When my first hen went broody, I had a hard time finding many details online.  I like the fine details in things, myself, and I'm sure other people are the same, so I wanted to offer a detailed post on this topic.  This is what I have found works well for me.

The information in this post bounces around a bit, such as, some information that you need in the beginning of your process is actually located at towards the end of the post.  Read it all the way through so you have have a thorough understanding of the entire process from start to finish.

1.  The Broody Hen

First, you'll need to make sure you have a broody hen.  You can't make a hen broody.  She's either broody or she's not.  All you can do is hope and pray one goes broody and have a plan in place for when it happens.  Broodiness happens when it happens.

It is said that the extended daylight hours during spring and summer are what triggers a hen's hormones to go broody.  But, I have also heard of some hens going broody during the fall and occasionally in the winter as well.  It could be because the owner uses artificial light in the coop.  I'm not really sure.  All my experience with broody hens has been during the spring and summer and occasionally in very early fall.

Click Here for my post on how to tell if your hen is broody.

Once you have a hen that is showing signs of broodiness, watch her for at least the next 3 days to make sure she's dedicated to setting.  It's not uncommon for a hen to "think" she might want to hatch chicks and then, after a few days, decide that it's not really all she thought it was going to be, and quit setting.  So, watch her for a few days and make sure she has really thought it through and is ready to be a mom.

During this time of waiting, get all your other things in order so that you are ready to move forward.

2.  The Eggs

Once your broody has passed the test and proved that she is dedicated to setting, you can give her some fertile eggs.

If you have a rooster in your flock, this is an easy step.  Just collect some eggs that your flock has laid recently.  You'll want to give her the freshest eggs that you have available, but the eggs shouldn't be more than 10 days old, preferably not more than 7 days old.

Before giving her the eggs, look at the eggs and make sure they are clean, normal shaped and normal sized (no "fairy eggs" or "pullet eggs"), and not cracked or otherwise damaged.

You can candle the eggs to check for tiny cracks if you want to.  I've not had an issue with cracks, so I don't do this, but other people do and there's nothing wrong with taking the extra precaution.  If the eggs have been shipped, you definitely want to candle them to check for cracks, as well as other things.  For this post I won't cover shipped eggs.  I don't recommend ordering shipped eggs for a broody hen because of the time it takes to receive eggs through the mail.

Do not wash the eggs.  Washing them removed the "bloom", which is a natural, protective layer that keeps bacteria from entering the egg through it's pores.  If the eggs are dirty, you can wipe them gently with a warm, wet paper towel or you can gently scrap off what you can and leave the rest.  I would scrap off what I could get off and leave them be.

While you're waiting until it's time to give the hen the eggs, store the eggs in a carton on your counter with the pointy end down and the big end up.  Prop one end of the carton up on a book.  To "turn" the eggs, switch which end of the carton is propped up.  "Turn" the eggs this way 3 times a day.  Don't store the eggs in the refrigerator or on top of the refrigerator.

3.  Check Your Eggs For Fertility

If you haven't checked your hens eggs for fertility before, it's a good idea to check fertility of eggs while you're waiting to see if she is going to stay broody.

Basically, when you crack an egg open, you'll see a flat, white spot directly on the yolk, not the white string suspended from the yolk.  If it's a small speck of solid white, it's not fertile.  If the white spot is a "bulls eye", it's fertile and the bulls eye is what will be the chick.

If you're unsure, compare eggs from your flock to an egg from the store.  Store bought eggs aren't fertile so that may help you more easily see the difference between a fertile egg and a non-fertile egg.

If you don't have a rooster or you find out your rooster isn't doing his job, you will need to acquire some fertile eggs elsewhere.

Your hen doesn't care what kind of eggs she is sitting on or where they came from.  You can get chicken eggs, duck eggs, guinea eggs, turkey eggs, or whatever you would like to add to your flock.

Make sure the eggs come from a flock that is NPIP.  This means that the birds are regularly tested for a variety of different diseases including bird flu and they have tested negative.

Diseases CAN be transmitted through eggs.  If you buy eggs from another flock and that flock has a disease, you can bring that disease into your own flock by bringing in eggs for your broody hen.  So, be very careful and be picky about where you get eggs from.

4.  How Many Eggs to Hatch

The number of eggs your hen can hatch will depend on the breed and size of your broody and the size of the eggs.  Bantam breeds cannot handle the number of eggs that large fowl breeds can handle.  A dozen bantam eggs should fit under a bantam chicken, but she will only be able to handle 3-6 regular sized chicken eggs.  A large fowl hen can handle 12, maybe even 18, regular large eggs, depending on how large she is, but can handle two dozen Bantam eggs.

As long as the eggs are completely covered by the hen's body, I don't worry.  To be safe, I usually give the hen a couple eggs less than what I think she can handle, but that's a personal choice and one you will have to make on your own.

You also want to keep your coop space in mind when you are hatching eggs.  The new babies won't take up much space at first, but once they grow up, they will.  If you intend to keep all the new babies, you'll need to make sure you have the space in your coop for all of them and for all of them to be comfortable.  Overcrowding can cause stress and disease so it should always be avoided.

5.  Marking Your Eggs

If you are allowing your broody hen to set in the coop with the rest of the flock, make sure you mark the eggs before you give them to her.  To do this, just put a large X on all "sides" of the eggs.  This will allow you to quickly and easily spot any new eggs that have been laid in the nest so that you can remove them.  When marking your eggs, use a Number 2 pencil.  Whatever you use, don't use anything red or the hen will interpret that to be blood and eat the eggs.  Markers have the ability to be absorbed through the pores of the egg so I never use markers to mark fertile eggs.

Check your broody hen's eggs every day, at least once per day, but preferably twice.  You will need to remove any extra eggs that have been laid in her nest.

If you don't remove them and you have a rooster, the eggs will likely develop, but will be behind the rest of the eggs in development.  When her "original" eggs hatch, the others will be days or weeks away from hatching, but she will abandon them and the chicks inside will be left to die in their shells.

If you don't remove the extra eggs and you don't have a rooster, the eggs could grow bacteria and explode, which could potentially spread bacteria to the rest of the eggs and cause a complete loss of the entire clutch of eggs.

So this is a very important thing that you need to make sure you stay on top of every day.

6.  Moving Your Broody Hen

Moving your broody out of the main coop and into a quarantine pen is another option.  There are pros and cons in both moving a broody and in leaving her in the main coop.

If you move your broody before the eggs begin to hatch, she may "break" and not be broody anymore.  For this reason, if I'm going to move a broody, I either move her after she has proven she is going to set (after she's been setting for at least 3 days), but before I give her any real eggs OR after the babies have begun to hatch.  

If you decide to move her, make sure to completely set up her new space so that it's ready for her.  Put food, water, fresh pine shavings, and a nesting box in her new space.

When you move her, do so at night, once it's been dark for a while so she will be really sleepy and less alert.  Move her eggs first and then move her if you can't move them all at the same time.  When you take her to her new space, put her down right on top of her eggs.  Hopefully she will sit right back down and get comfortable again.  Don't panic if she gets up and wanders around for a few minutes.  It's normal for her to want to see her new space.  If she's up for more than 30 minutes or if she lays down somewhere other than on her eggs, though, she may be broken.

If you decide to leave her in the main coop with the rest of the flock, you will need to switch the entire flock over to chick starter.  I do this when I give the broody her eggs.  You at least need to do this by the time the chicks hatch.  Layer feed is not healthy or safe for chicks, so switching the entire flock to chick starter makes it easier to make sure that the chicks don't have access to layer feed.

8.  Marking Air Cells

If you want to, you can mark the eggs' air cells to help you stay on top of their progress.  I always do this no matter if I'm incubating the eggs in an incubator or if a broody is incubating them for me.

I mark the air cells on Day 7, Day 14, and Day 18.

This just helps me to know the chicks are developing according to schedule and helps me know where the chick should be pipping when it hatches.  I once had a chick that I had to help out of it's egg and the air cell being marked was extremely helpful in helping the chick out of it's shell because I knew where the air cell had been on Day 18.

It is also perfectly fine not to mark the air cells.  I just wanted to include this step because it is something that I always do.

7.  Leave Her Be

Once you have your broody settled on her clutch of eggs, leave her be.

If you check on her too often and cause her too many interruptions, she may feel like it isn't a good time to be broody anymore and she'll quit, or "break".

You need to check on her once a day, check her eggs and make sure they aren't cracked or busted, no smell is coming from under her, and that no other eggs have been laid in her nest.

Watch her to make sure she is getting off the nest once a day to eat, drink, dust bathe, and relieve herself.  Her eggs are perfectly fine while she is off the nest.  Another hen may even come and tend to her nest while she's off.  My hens regularly do this.

If you want to take treats to her while she's on the nest, it's perfectly fine to do so.  Especially when it's really hot outside, I make sure to take hydrating treats to my broody.  Fruit is a good option, but don't give her too much because it can cause diarrhea and that will dehydrate her.  Fresh vegetables, grass, meal worms, a scrambled egg, and corn are all good options.

8.  One More Note

Make sure that the nesting box that your broody is in has a large lip on the front to help hold the eggs and the chicks inside the nesting box.  The chicks usually hatch over a 2-3 day period from Day 20 to Day 22.  The first chick to hatch is usually running all around and over the broody by the time the last chick hatches.  The large lip will help keep the chicks from accidentally falling out of the nest.  A broody is unlikely to jump out to rescue one chick if it falls out and, if in the main coop, the chick will then be at the mercy of the other hens (who probably aren't going to be nice to it) or it will get chilled because it can't get back into the nest with Mom.

Once the broody is out of the nest with the chicks, she will find a place in the floor for them and won't return to the nest.  She will also protect her chicks from the rest of the flock to the best of her ability.  Once the chicks are old enough, she will teach them to roost and by the time she is finished raising them, they will be accepted members of the flock.

If you separate the broody, you will need to reintroduce the broody as well as the babies when you are ready to put them into the main coop space.

You can put the nest straight on the floor while she's hatching if you so choose.  If not, don't make it too terribly far off the ground.  Mine is about 5 inches off the floor.  This keeps the chicks from jumping or falling too far when the broody takes them out of the nest for the first time.

9.  When She's Done Being Broody

A broody hen will raise her babies until they are somewhere between 3-6 weeks old generally.  She may go longer than that or she may reject them when they hatch (which I've never had happen with mine and pray it never does.)

You will know when your broody is done being broody.  She may start the peck at the babies to encourage them to be more self-sufficient, not concerning herself as much with their well being, and she will begin to lay eggs again.

If you allowed them to hatch in the main coop with the rest of the flock, then, when she is finished raising them, they should be established members of the flock, roosting at night with the others and everything.

If you moved your broody to a separate pen, then they will be newcomers to the main flock and the broody will be a newcomer as well, so you will have to reintroduce the broody hen and the babies.  I, personally, separate my broody hen.  When she is finished, I reintroduce her to the flock, but I leave the babies in the separate pen until they are almost the same size as the main flock, and then I introduce them and merge them into the main flock.



I hope this has been helpful for you.  If I left out details or you have questions about something I didn't mention, let me know and I'll do my best to help.

Good luck and Happy Hatching!