A few days ago we had a hen go broody...one of our beautiful barnevelders, Henrietta.
So, we gave her 9 eggs. That part of the story is simple enough. She's been on her nest for two full days, expected hatch date is ~March 6th (Happy Birthday, Dad!!). :)
This morning Charlotte and I went down to water the chicks and check on Henrietta. As soon as we come down she typically hops off her nest and heads for the scratch that we throw down. I wanted to get video of her getting back on her eggs...since it's so sweet...and this is what I captured. This one's long...
Hmmm...a second broody hen? I waited to see what Henrietta would do...and I caught this:
I wasn't convinced that the second hen was really broody, she didn't squawk at me when I reached for the eggs, so I removed her, and put Henrietta in front of the nest...here's what she did, note Henrietta's true broody behavior...I've never heard a chicken squawk like this before she went broody!
So, I decided to give broody hen #2 a small clutch of 6 eggs, she's not acting really broody, but if she is willing to sit I don't want to discourage her since we could use the chicks! If she's still on them tonight at dark I'll give her a few more :) Happy broody hens make me happy...I love seeing how God has designed these beautiful birds!
To be continued...
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