Marigold on eggs.

[di]

Right...she's still sat tight,bless her...only problem is that she's really reluctant to get off for food or water.She's in a fenced of bit at the back of the coop and I've popped in water & food,also some corn in the straw on the ground...oh & a piece of turf!
She went outside for a bit on Saturday,but got really picked on by the others,which is possibly why she didn't want to go out yesterday!
Will she be OK just in the little sectioned off bit or should I really be trying to get her outside for a little exercise?

[Nicos]

Leave food and water nearby..and somewhere she can poo not right next to the nest.
Don't push her off...leave it up to her.

I gave mine small amounts to eat every 3 or so hours- oats,pellets, maize,sultanas. and offered them water in the way of a ramekin dish.
She'll get up for a stretch eventually ( or her legs will drop off!!!!!)- and a poo...none of mine pood near the eggs

...and yup- I'd say that a couple of the mums lot a bit of weight- but they're nearly up to weight again now

[di]

That's why I was worried...legs dropping off!...I lifted her off the eggs yesterday & she was really wobbly!...
Cheers Nicos!...I'm actually more worried about her than I am the eggs!

[RichmondHens]

Depending on the breed, my broodies don't come off every day, sometimes only every other day, and near hatching day not at all. I've even in the past offered water in a bowl to one as she sat on her nest (which she drank) as the eggs had started to pip and I knew she wouldn't be off until they had all hatched (and it was hot weather). Take your cue from the hen and unless she has not got off for over 4 days leave her be. Good luck!

[di]

Thanks RichmondHens,that's put my mind at ease a bit!I took her off today(before reading your post),and she got straight back on without having anything.I had got the water a little way away from her,thinking she'd have to have at least a few steps walk,but I've now moved it right by her.I found a huge worm whilst digging...chooks don't normally get them as our soil is so heavy it needs all the worms going,however I offered it to her & she looked at it like it was an alien!
She was sold to us as a Pied Suffolk...not sure ifthat's the proper term or just a local one for the cross breed?She's the opposite of a Sussex...looks remarkably like a Magpie(chicken,not real magpie!)
Anyway,I'm sure I shall carry on worrying about her,but so long as it's normal for her not to be getting off daily for a bit of exercise & food,I shall try to chill a bit!

[di]

I can report a poo!!!...& My God,those that have warned me about the smell weren't joking!But at least I know she's been off the nest to do it & possibly had a little food/drink at the same time.
I was treated to a special thing this arvo...just as I popped my head round to say Goodbye,she was turning her eggs...I know it might sound a pretty basic thing to get excited about,but it was quite a magical thing to watch...My clever girl!!
A chap at the allotment has suggested putting a large tray with shallow water in with her as she's not going outside...he was saying in nature,fowl will go out early in the morning to dampen their wings on the grass,therefore putting moisture onto the eggs...has anyone else done this for them?

[Nicos]

A chap at the allotment has suggested putting a large tray with shallow water in with her as she's not going outside...he was saying in nature,fowl will go out early in the morning to dampen their wings on the grass,therefore putting moisture onto the eggs...has anyone else done this for them?

Nope- but mine did have access to the outside.
In fact they often had a dust bath in the cold sunshine!( could have been a bit damp in Feb of course......)

[di]

I wish I could get her to go out...when I'm up there I leave the coop door open,so she could,but she's just not interested!...It does make me feel really bad though,but I did my best to make her a place away from the others,but she just wouldn't have it!
My new plan is to scrape up some bigger bits of turf(she's got just a little square in with her at the mo)& dampen them with some water a couple of times a day...does that sound better?I was worried that the bath idea may make her wings a bit too wet??He also suggested slightly drying off some grass & popping a little at a time in with her for extra moisture.

[Bephlam]

Don't think I've ever seen you this worried about anything!!

I'm sure she'll be fine...don't know about you though!

[di]

I worry about everything!
I think it's because I know her...I'm worried about the eggs in the incy...even though I'm not adjusting it,I have to look at the temp at least every five minutes...first with both eyes,then with one shut & then the other!But if either lot of eggs don't hatch we'll be disappointed...but the thought of Marigold not going outside or getting constipated blah blah blah!!!...or worst case scenario,if anything happened to her,I'd be mortified!
I know she'll be fine & I'm finding it amazing to watch...how does she know she needs to sit on them & make sure they're all covered...and even more amazing is watching her turn them...she was doing it again this am when I said Hello...I just think nature's amazing,how they have the instict to do what they need to,without being taught!Think the main reason I worry isn't that I don't believe she can do it,but that she's not "in" nature to do what her natural instincts tell her she should be doing...so today...stuff the digging & planting,I need to try & get her bit of the coop turfed up a little bit!(better lay some plastic underneath...Andi'd be really pleased if I managed to rot the floor!)

[RichmondHens]

Hi again. You really don't need to worry about her, she sounds like she is doing fine. You dont need to worry about dampening eggs until about day 18, if she is sitting on straw or hay in a coop. If she is on direct ground you dont need to worry at all about dampening - I had one bantam hatch off a load of chicks in the veg bed last summer, with no intervention from me at all. On day 18 take a bowl of tepid water and lift the bird off with one hand (or with a helper) and with the other flick drops of water all over the eggs (you can also use a fine water spray but don't soak the eggs - a chick can drown inside the egg if you make them too wet as water can get into their nostrils). Also the more you fuss around her generally, the more likely she is to abandon the eggs. Leave her alone apart from a look see morning and evening to make sure she's not dead (sounds silly but my mother years ago put food and water down for a hen that had died on the nest and she didn't notice!) and to give fresh water. Also take food away at night as she will not get off for it in the dark and it will attract vermin if left. The one other thing to do (if you didn't do it when you first set her on the eggs) is to dust her for lice if she is not getting off to bathe, and even if she is she may still need doing, as a lice infestation can make a bird too uncomfortable to sit and again, she may abandon the eggs. Good luck! I had four chicks hatch yesterday and another three in the nest to come, in addition to some I hatched 3 weeks ago, plus another hen just started sitting three days ago. It's just so magical to see them all.

[di]

Cheers RH.
She actually wanted to come out today...I was a total bag of nerves...other than her sis all the others were picking on her so badly,every time she tried to have a dustbath one would be over at her!... I stayed in whilst she wanted to be out & then after about half an hour helped her back in with her eggs...think she wanted to get in on her own,but the others were preventing her.
Tomorrow I'll remake the other temporary run for the others to go in if she wants to come out again...give her a chance to potter around without getting chased or pecked...may help my nerves a little too!
Other than the difficult half hour out with her "friends" this arvo,every thing seems to be going OK...can't believe there's still another two weeks to go!

[RichmondHens]

Hi A&D - Don't know if it's A or D I'm replying to - Just got back from a call out to a person who is hatching for the first time. Moved a hen plus chicks and hatching eggs from the main hen run (she had made a nest underneath the hen house and I had to crawl underneath to get at them - lovely) to a separate coop. Do you have a separate coop for marigold to go into? She will certainly need something once the eggs hatch as the chicks will get picked on by the other hens. Try to get hold of one of those little triangular coops - just perfect for broodies and chicks but in my opinion too small to keep hens in on a regular basis.

[di]

It's mainly me(Di)on here,although Andi occasionally has a look in!At the moment she's in a sectioned off part of the coop,but has a bit of room in there for her nest,food & water & about a foot square(maybe more)of turf.(& a bit more with woodshavings that I hope she'll use if she needs another poo!...we'll remove these before the chicks hatch...IF they hatch)
We've been meaning to build the others a new run adjacent to their present one...give the old one a bit of a breather.Andi is hopefully going to get onto that tomorrow.Then hopefully we'll be able to shut them out of the coop/this run,once they've done laying for the day,so that Marigold can have access to the run without getting bullied.Not sure if it's the best plan(more than open to suggestions!),but we intend on keeping her in the coop she's in now untill the chicks are a couple of days old & then move them into a new coop(been donated a shed for conversion),obviously we'll need to make a temporary run with smaller holed chicken wire,but depending on the hatch rate & how many are girls,we may keep them separate permanantlyDoes that sound workable?
Also,what do you think about her sis moving in with her???We've been told a chook should accept chicks so long as they are day olds when introduced??If she herself hasn't been broody is there any chance she might be maternal?Although sis(Dandelion)seems happy enough with the others,she seemed so pleased to spend a bit of time with Marigold this afternoon,it would be a shame to separate them permanantly,but if that's the best option we'd go with it.
Thanks loads for your advice so far...I know I'm probably being a tad pathetic worrying so much...I do my best not to!
Oh...on the subject of delousing...how the heck do I do that without having too much contact with her???:eek...she had a good old dust bathe(when I kept the others away)...do you think I should leave it?She's really not keen on being handled at the moment!
Also,before I go...you mentioned hatchlings of your own...piccies???(please!)

[bluemoon]

*Sigh* And I had this fantasy that letting a hen do the job would be a lot less stressful than trying to use an incubator.