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Brood hens are often used to hatch and raise poultry, but
I often hear comments about them leaving the nest before
the eggs hatch, or the nest being in an awkward place for
good management.
Having had some success in this area I will here
try o pass on some ideas for the novice poultry person.
First and of great importance is the breed of poultry used,
as some breeds just will not set no matter what, the
Leghorn being one but not the only one of these.
Almost any bantam breed will set, the Silky often being
described as a setting machine. With these small birds
one must be careful not to place more eggs than can be
easily covered so as not to leave some to get chilled.
If there are too many eggs it is likely that none will
hatch as the hen moves the eggs around a great deal and
every egg will be chilled at some time during incubation,
killing the embryo.
Among the large breeds of birds the game chickens are
probably the best. My personal favourite is The Old
English Game. Once settled on the nest they will endure
a great deal of abuse and still maintain their post.The
Plymouth Rocks are also good setters and being larger
birds will set a larger clutch of eggs.
We must not forget the Muscovy duck. These guys will set
forever it seems, will cover a large number of eggs, and
can handle bigger eggs making them good candidates for
turkey eggs.
No matter which breed you choose sooner or later you will
run into at least some of these problems.
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I've found a setting hen now how Do I move her:
I have moved many birds successfully using this method;
first make sure that the hen is setting good, she should
have been on the nest for several days. Gently slide your
hand under her, careful she may peck at you, but she
should stay on the nest. When your hand is under her she
may settle down on it. If she does she is ready to move.
Get a box the size of a nest, she will finish her set in
this box so make sure it is big enough but not so large
that it allows the eggs to role around. It must be deep
enough to allow it to be covered with a lid of some sort.
In this box put a quantity of clean straw and some of the
eggs she is sitting on. Place the hen in the box and put
the cover on it to keep her in. We are now ready to move
our broody.
To do this simply take the box and place it
were you want it, a dark place out of the way so she won't
be disturbed is best, and place feed and water near by. If
you have a confined area so much the better. Keep the
cover no the box for at least 48 hrs. so she gets used to
her new nest. This will not harm her as a setting hen only
gets off the nest once a day at most to eat and do her
business. Keep a close watch and make sure she returns to
the nest, if she doesn't place her back on the nest and
put the cover back in place. Repeat the next day, if she
still won't go back to the nest on her own put her back on
again. On the third day if she doesn't go back to the nest
on her own she probably never will. When she returns to
the nest on her own watch her for three more days and if
she is still sitting you can trust her to hatch her eggs.
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My hen is setting but not on the right eggs:
To switch the eggs under a hen that has set good for at
least three days (a week is better) you must go to her at
night with a flashlight and wearing a pair of gloves as
you will get pecked. The flashlight is so you can see your
way around in the dark and should not be flashed around a
lot.
Gently slide your hand under the hen and remove all
the eggs she has. Hopefully you will know how many eggs
are there so you can count them as they are removed to
make sure you get them all, otherwise by feel make sure
there are none left for if there are they will hatch long
before the good ones you are about to put under her and
she will leave the nest with the one mutt chick and you
will lose the rest of the eggs.
Now that you have removed
all the old eggs replace them with the eggs you want
hatched and quietly go to the house and have a cup of tea
to relax you. The next day you will find "Mrs. Broody"
still happily setting on her eggs and pecking at anyone
who dares to come near.
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