advice re thin broody

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chickenfan

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I have a Pekin Bantam who has been sitting on 4 eggs for nearly 2 weeks. I get her off the eggs twice a day to eat wheat and drink, but she eats only a little, and is getting thinner and thinner and is losing body muscle. She raised some chicks in Feb/March/April and has been back with the flock for c 6 weeks, seeming quite normal, then she went broody again.

I am worried she is sitting too soon after raising the last chicks, and that raising more may take too much out of her. I have another, much plumper bird that has gone broody and am now wondering whether I should transfer the eggs and give this bird a rest, or whether this would be cruel? I'm concerned that she is so thin and not eating much in spite of lots of encouragement.

She is three years old. She was multi-vaccinated when I got her, but I guess these will be wearing off now, so I'm also slightly concerned she may be going down with something she was vaccinated for. She looks well, and has never been ill, but I'm puzzled she is not eating more. I have in the past lost a bird after it raised chicks.
 
Yes, I think it was far too soon Chickenfan to have her sit again. She will be consuming huge amounts of energy in this weather in an attempt to keep her body temperature high enough to hatch the eggs and won't have had enough time to build herself up again. Sounds as though she hasn't got enough left in her to make the last 7 days and you are in danger of losing her and the hatch. I don't think you have any option but to take her off and replace her with a healthy hen. In this weak state she will be susceptible to illness as well.

Good luck. If you have a strong broody to change over hopefully all will work out well. But the thin girl will need a lot of attention to get her eating again -she will be in shock when removed from her eggs.
 
She may be helped to eat if you make high-protein warm mashes for her, including scrambled egg or crumbled egg yolk, mealworms, sunflower seeds, and the addition of a tonic. I can understand why you've been giving wheat whilst she is sitting, but the protein content of this is comparatively low.
 
I missed the wheat feed bit Marigold. As you say the protein content is far too low, only 8 -10%. Whereas she needs more like 15 -20%. Rearers pellets are best, then she will eat the chick crumb only with her chicks. Still think you need to take her off Chickenfan if you can't get her to eat a lot of high protein feed quickly.
 
If you were going to get some chick crumb in for the hatch anyway, you could make this the basis of her mash, rather than pellets, as it has a high protein content to help chicks grow on fast.
When was she last wormed? It's good to do this before a hen attempts to sit, as a worm burden will increase her weight loss problems and general debility. If she hasn't been done within the last 4 months, you could take her off the nest and substitute the other hen. Then make up a small quantity of irresistible goodies such as mixed corn, sunflower seeds and mealworms, measure out 7 small potfuls of this, and mix in 0.5 of the measure of Flubenvet, ie her dose for the weeks treatment. Then give her one potful per day so you know the full dose has gone down, even if she isn't quite up to eating the usual amount of pellets.
 
Thank you both so much for your advice, Chris and Marigold. I will do as you suggest. The other hen is no longer broody, so I will probably have to sacrifice the eggs.

The only other things I can think off are putting her under an electric hen and carrying out the food measures you suggest, then perhaps rearing the chicks myself when they hatch. But she is much more important than her unborn eggs.
 
Agree with Chris and Marigold. My broody generally always came out before chicks hatched atleast once or twice in the day to eat and drink and managed to keep well, however, this year there was a big gap between the first chick and the last chick, thus I had crumb and water near her to ensure she was eating and drinking. This worked and the hen was eating the crumb and drinking, and thus, kept the hen well. Thus would suggest the same to have crumb/growers pellets and some water near her, however, you'll need to ensure the water does not spill as the hen will move around in the nest a little.
 
I disagree on what has been said about the feeding as their metabolism winds down when they are broody so they don't need as much feed and they don't need a very high protein. This is natural for all birds that sit on eggs. The gap between broods is not that bad either as rearing chicks takes little out of them. I would be concerned about a build up of red mite if she really is losing weight and condition. If you are confident about the red mite, I see no harm in seeing through the incubation. I have hatched hundreds under broodies, deliberately set and when they have stolen a nest.
 
Hi Chuck, Thank you for your input. She is not very interested in protein (a tiny bit of scrambled egg), but is enjoying apricot and tomato and is eating about a tablespoon of corn a day, and I'm giving her some tonic in the water. She normally eats much more, and is not bothering to go off and dustbath, but rushes straight back to the eggs. I can't get her to eat chick crumbs. She doesn't have mites, but I'm worming her. She is still sitting at the moment, but I have managed to borrow a small Brinsea incubator, and once I'm confident with this, I'll transfer the eggs over. She rejected an egg yesterday, and seems to be pushing another one out from under her, which became a bit cool. Somehow I feel it has been too much for her, as the weather has been so exceptionally cold while she was raising chicks, and that I shouldn't have allowed her to sit again.
 
I'm very grateful to Chris' advice about the cold. My broody is looking much more normal after being in a warm place in a catbox in my house for 24 hours. She's now relaxed when she gets off the eggs and is doing all the normal things like preening and dustbathing as well as eating much more. So thank you Chris for pointing out how much energy she was using in the cold. I may still transfer the eggs to an incubator to give her a rest, but it feels a big step and I've not used an incubator before.
 
I'm so sorry to hear about your broody burning out. I agree with you that I think it takes a huge amount out of a bird to sit and to raise chicks. I actually don't even think she is sitting very well as her body isn't 'hot' and the eggs aren't as warm as they should be. So the eggs are going in the incubator. I've hesitated as I'm going away for a couple of days and I'll have to ask a friend to turn the eggs. My condolances again for your broody.
 
I now have the 3 eggs in a small, basic incubator, but my hen is still sitting, this time on nothing. As its very cold and windy, I've put her sitting on nothing in a catbox in my house. Do you think its kinder to leave her on the eggs and see if they hatch (due 31 May), then take the chicks away if they hatch? Or do you think if she's well protected she will be OK with the chicks too? I don't want to burn her out, and am not sure what's the best to do.
 
Although you have removed the eggs she will still feel broody for a while until her hormones have recovered and she returns to normal. The usual way to break a broody is to put her in a sin bin, ie a wire- bottomed cage such as a dog crate, with no bedding so the air can get to her chest and cool her down. As you say she wasn't very hot, possibly it won't take very long to get her back to normal. If you feel its too windy and cold for her outside it will be OK to keep her under cover, but in an unheated area where she will just be protected from the worst of the weather, not actually kept warm. If she is in a cat box, make sure there is no bedding at all in there for her to sit down on. Tomorrow it will be best to get her outside, preferable in the run with the others, only separated from them by a mesh barrier in case they peck her, and also to stop her from going into the nestboxes in the coop. Make a bare corner for her, sweep away any bedding there may be on the floor, and harden your heart. She will probably stalk around grumbling, but airing her chest. Give food and water of course. At night, if the run is safe and secure, just leave her in her corner, with shelter from rain if she wants to use it. If the run is not safe for her overnight you should confine her to a sin bin if possible. After a day or so she will be cured and will show this when returned to the run by not wanting to go into the nestboxes.
If you are going away for a day or so, just tell your chicken sitter what is going on, and the hen will not require too much extra care, just her dose of Flubenvet and treats as prepared.
 
Once you have taken her away, there is a risk she will not take to either eggs or chicks.
 
Thank you Marigold for all your thoughts and advice. Do you think its important she stops sitting? She is thin and is eating two level tablespoons of wheat (she is Pekin), a little egg yolk and fruit, plus a tonic in her water. I put her back on the eggs because I'm worried about leaving for two days tomorrow. The incubator is a Brinsea Eco and somehow seems very unnatural.

If the eggs hatch (due 31st) and I take the chicks away to an electric hen, will this be much more stressful for her? It would be a natural end to her broodiness. I presume I shouldn't let a thin hen raise chicks if I don't want her to exhaust herself, or is it the sitting (in cold weather) that is the main challenge?
 
I would think that if she does manage to hatch the eggs it might be unkind to remove the chicks after all her work. She will be up and about and eating more normally, and the strain of looking after the chicks will not be so bad as brooding the eggs. I somehow thought you had decided to take her off the eggs and return her to the flock, but if she is still sitting then as the chicks are so near to hatching it would be best to let her get on with it, don't you think? She will gradually return to her normal state over the next 6 weeks and will then be fed up with the chicks and will want to be back with her friends.
 
Thank you for your thoughts Marigold. Another broody hen has taken over the eggs today! I'm so grateful for everyone's advice, and also that she is getting a rest after brooding in freezing temperatures.
 
That's good, the new broody will have a lovely surprise when they all hatch so early, won't she?
Do let us know how the hatch goes, and how your Pekin girl gets on as she recovers.
 
Hi Chickenfan. You've done everything I would, so if it doesn't work out you have certainly done your best. Poor girl, as Marigold says, is just going on hormones, even though it will kill her. Fingers crossed she will recover and perhaps hatch next year.
 
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