Broodys all over the place!

[Cindlady2]

LOL It's finally spring here in southern Wisconsin! It was a late spring for us and as a result my girls decided to go broody within a few weeks! I have one that just hatched 11 chicks. I had 4 others go broody but one (young one) I got to break. Good thing, she was in the loft and hard to reach! Another one broke because one of the turkeys took her place! LOL guess a broody turkey trumps a broody hen! However I still have 2 stubborn hens I have to find space for! I also have 2 broody turkeys and a missing guinea hen.... wonder where she is and what she's doing! So, that's 5 broodys and a freshly hatched batch! I will soon be over run!

BTW.... I also have 5 cute kitties that just turned 8 weeks old! Anyone want a kitten?

Yes, it's spring is Wisconsin!

 

[Beekissed]

Awwwwwwww!!! You will absolutely LOVE this then! It's the funnest thing ever to see the chicks loving on their mamas, running their little legs off to keep up with her, riding on her back, etc.

I can't wait until you get to experience this...there's no going back to buying them at the feed store or incubating them when you see how easy it is to brood chicks when you have an expert to keep them warm, show them food and water and keep them safe.

I've only incubated eggs twice, once with a heating pad on a natural nest situation and another time in an actual incubator...both times I realized just how fragile those little lives are and that I had no business messing with any of that if I could do it differently. With broodies, I can get chicks done by the experts and I don't have to worry so much.

 

[Beekissed]

I hope you don't get little copies of him running around! Make good eatin' if you do, huh?

 

[lcertuche]

When we had game hens we never had summer eggs because everyone was broody. I went from 8 hens and one rooster to over 60 chickens by winter. Each hen hatched out two or three clutches of eggs.

 

[NH Homesteader]

My broodies have had zero success. We are going to candle and figure out what in the heck is going on. We didn't have a way to separate them and they're all first timers so lots of nest hopping. Hope to either have chicks or break some because I am sick of having no eggs, and no chicks!

Now that I have been reading Bee's broody info, I know how to help next time around at least.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Woohoo - A coronation Sussex hatched out what looks like 2 lavender orp and one black orp chick! Not exactly wonderful success since she was on at least a dozen eggs. Now, if she can just keep 'em alive!

 

[NH Homesteader]

I had a broody chase my 60 lb hunting dog across the yard yesterday... I wouldn't be too worried about a cat! Lol

 

[Beekissed]

My current mama, which is wild as a garter snake, so it's tough to get close enough for a clear pic of her and the family. Last year this hen established her nest out in the woods and raised her family in the woods and at the edge of the meadow...I rarely got to see those babies during the day time. She's sort of doing the same this year, though not hugging the woods as closely as she did last season.

She's so wary that I had to take these pics from inside the house and she still started to move away from me and my pesky camera. I LOVE this hen!!! She's my favorite WR and I hope to keep her genetics going along.

This is her and her wild wood's bunch last season....she was just a pullet then.

I've got two more sitting on nests right now and due to hatch this coming weekend. Since they are hatching at the same time, it's likely they will brood their chicks together...I've had that happen a couple of times in the past.

 

[tortoise]

I'm thinking feeding silkies would cost less than running an incubator?

.... chicken math ....

 

[Hinotori]

oh, I laughed everytime they did it. Vicious little balls of feather. They couldn't even attempt to hurt me unless I was wearing sandals. Then they might bite a toe