Ever since we brought home our four adorable chicks from the feed store a little over a year ago, I have dreamed about hatching our own chicks.
I know we don’t have a rooster, so that didn’t seem too likely, but then, after reading and researching on the internet, my eyes were opened to a new possibility. Turns out, you don’t need your own rooster…you can order fertile eggs online and have them shipped right to your home! Not only that, but you can choose the specific breeds you want to hatch, and how many of each breed…endless options! Now, you DO need to have a broody hen waiting for eggs to sit on, or an incubator to hatch them…I was lucky enough to have a surprise broody ready and waiting. My Sicilian Buttercup, who’s not supposed to be a broody breed by the way, was sitting stubbornly on her nest, day and night, waiting for eggs to hatch. Maybe it’s the “mom” in me, or maybe it’s my overly compassionate attitude when it comes to animals, but she was so determined, I couldn’t just let her sit on an empty or hopeless nest…so I caved in and ordered the eggs. I ordered 4 eggs from a small farm in Northern California, and actually received 6…I guess they always send extras because shipped eggs have a lower hatch rate due to the not so careful shipping process and carriers. We placed them under our hen the day we received them, she gladly accepted them, and then it was time for us to wait.
All broody hens are different, some stay on the nest, some quit early and walk away…you really never know how they will be until you try. Some people recommend having a hen sit on fake eggs the first season to see how she does…I decided to just go for it! It was a long, exciting three week wait, and definitely a test of patience! Butters was SO dedicated to being on her nest, that she wasn’t even taking her daily break to eat, drink, dirt bathe, and relieve herself. I noticed this early on, and actually ended up removing her from the nest each day so she would take care of herself. She was funny though…once she was off the nest, she forgot about it! Out of sight, out of mind, I guess! So our daily schedule involved taking her off the nest and placing her outside with the other hens, setting a timer for 15 minutes, and then catching her (not easy!) to place her back on the nest.
Just our luck, we ended up having a heat wave during the last week of the nesting period. I had to make sure that Butters was comfortable and not overheating, so I placed a small fan near her nest in the coop, and offered her water constantly. I’m pretty certain the crazy heat had something to do with how the hatch turned out in the end, and I did end up moving the entire nest into the house for the last few days because it was just too ridiculously hot.
Right on time, the afternoon and evening of day 21, they hatched. There really is nothing like watching a baby chick hatch, and even better than that, is watching your kids watch the chicks hatch…the wonder of it all! It’s just such an amazing process…a miracle in 21 short days. An egg, that you could have had for breakfast, in just three weeks grows into a beautiful living, breathing chick. Amazing. Two adorable chicks were born July 27, 2016. Sadly, these were the only 2 that hatched, and one was a rooster. We knew right away because he is a rare auto-sexing breed, which means the males and females have unique markings to tell them apart at hatch. I left the remaining unhatched eggs under mama hen for a few extra days, and read all sorts of tips and tricks online to test the eggs…tap on them and see if you hear peeping…float them in warm water to check for movement and sinking…I tried it all. On day 25, I decided our hatch was over, and we removed the eggs so Butters could take care of her two little babies, and not continue to sit on a lost cause clutch. It’s really tough to give up and admit defeat, but in the end, you just have to focus on the positives, and that’s what we did.
