i think my buff orp is killing herself trying to hatch these eggs

[bj taylor]

she almost never comes off the nest. this is her first time to go broody. her comb has gone very pale & her energy is nill. her comb was bright red like the others. I try to hand feed her & get her to drink, but she rarely accepts anything from me. is this how it goes? i'm afraid she's going to die before her babies come (she's got about 10 days to go & I don't know if she can hold that long).

on another chicken note, I've made up my mind that my rooster is going to the soup pot this week. I haven't picked the day, but I think that's what I have to do is pick a time & stick to it. my flock is suffering too much because of him. I have to be the animal caretaker that makes the smart/right decision & quit being a baby.

at the moment, i'm not particularly enjoying having chickens.

 

[earlybird10842]

Good for you for sending the roo to freezer camp! Broodies do tend to not eat to the point of making themselves sick, and I would get her off the nest and see if she "Wakes up" , realizes she's hungry, and eats before returning to the nest.

 

[catjac1975]

Try leaving her a bowl of water and feed so she does not have to get up.

 

[MontyJ]

I have to be the animal caretaker that makes the smart/right decision & quit being a baby.

at the moment, i'm not particularly enjoying having chickens.

Hang in there. It will get better in time.

 

[so lucky]

Regarding the pale comb: my chickens' combs vary in redness from day to day, signifying to me whether they laid, or will lay an egg that day. Honestly, if one of them has a pale comb, I know I won't get an egg from her. Next day it will be bright, and she lays as usual. And yes, I know which girl lays which egg. (I only have 4 at present) Over the darkest days of winter, when they weren't laying at all, the combs paled out to light pink. Probably a hormone thing.

 

[Stubbornhillfarm]

yes, some will get to that point. I would head the advice of others and either take her out for a minute and put her by food or put some food and water in with her if you can. Other than that, you have to let them do their thing.

They are nerve wracking aren't they? I can't wait to see pictures of your beautiful chicks!

 

[bj taylor]

I really appreciate the advice & input. I think, if these eggs are going to hatch, it will be this week. my count is slightly off. I have tried & tried to convince her to eat/drink. I put the water to her mouth to no avail. I hold the food in my hand, then leave it right at her beak - nope. sooo, just going to wait her out & hope things work out ok.

 

[Smart Red]

My broody lost a lot of weight since she decided to sit on the nest a good two weeks before I decided to leave some eggs to sit on which added another 21 days to her first 14. You may not see it, but the hen will leave the nest a couple of times a day to eat, drink, and defecate. I have food inside the coop so she helped herself and went back to the nest. Most of the time I didn't notice her off, but since there were new eggs on the nest sometimes, I know she was up and about.

I seriously doubt you need to worry. Hens seem to know what to do.

I, too, have a roo that is going into the stew pot. Even though both my roosters are beautiful and polite to me, I can see the problem with too many roosters and too few hens. I think I've identified the roughest rooster. Ranger is also my noisiest rooster. Yesterday - with it's beautiful outside working weather - he seemed to be crowing constantly. Bothered DH so I figured it bothered the neighbors working in their yard. Heck, it even started to bother me! I finally managed to corner him in the coop and lock him in. The rest of the day was much quieter. He's the one that has to go.

Mamma and babies are doing very well - except for the night last Thursday I went to lock up the coop and found one baby outside trying to find mom. She has them out for a walk right now and took them out a few times since the weather has gotten warmer. This way of being a chicken momma is so much easier than buying chicks! There is little for me to do and I love it.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Is she pooping in her nest? If not, she has to be getting off her nest. You say you almost never see her off the nest. Same with my broodies.

I dont remember if you have her locked up or if she is free to come and go as she wishes. I dont lock mine up so I cant speak to that situation.

Sometimes Ill see a broody off her nest but often I dont. Especially if the weather is cool, that daily trip off the nest can be pretty quick. Sometimes in the heat of summer a broody may stay off the nest for an hour or more at a time. Ive seen hens take two of those long breaks in the same day in the middle of summer. Each broody is different and time of year may make another difference.

I have absolutely no qualms about taking a broody off her nest and putting her outside the coop. Sometimes they immediately go back to their nest, sometimes they eat, drink, and take their daily constitutional before they go back. I dont do this to all my broodies, but if one is particularly bad about pecking me when I check under her for unmarked eggs, out the door she goes. Ive never had one quit being broody by doing this.

 

[canesisters]

I'm SOOO hoping this goes well for you (and the hen & chicks).
I'm sure that she is completely equipped with everything she needs to know in order to do this - but I still cringe just a little every time that I see a new post here. You've got that camera all charged up and ready - right? We're on pins and needles waiting for chick-picts