Broody Hens in Winter

One big question is, can I hatch chicks in the winter?

The answer, yes!

If you keep lights on your hens, you may find yourself dealing with a broody hen. Yes, it is possible for her to hatch out eggs, but there are a few things to keep in mind.

1) During the winter, hens tend to molt and use the winter to re-charge. This is why generally they do not lay eggs without a light. As such, the shells will sometimes be a bit thinner in the winter. This means, that you may have more broken eggs during the 21 day incubation period. Try to be selective of the eggs you place under the hen and make sure you are still using a layer crumble and/or oyster shell.

2) It's cold! If you are able to set mama up in a broody box, that's great! If not, try to make sure you have mama someplace nice and cozy. If not, she may decide that it is too much hassle and get off the eggs. My silkie did just

that a few days ago. She decided that she was getting cold by her lonesome and joined the remaining hens on the roosts.

If it gets too cold, and your chicks are in distress, you can add a heat lamp. Make sure it is a red lamp so as not to irritate mama. However, your hen will do a good job of making sure they are warm enough. Just make sure that you hen has plenty of shavings and access to food near her. We have a winter broody box that is more enclosed than the others. This helps everyone to stay a little warmer.

3) Lower hatch rate. You will see a decrease in the hatch rate of your clutches. On average, using a broody hen I would get 7-8 out of 9 eggs. In the winter, that usually drops to about 4-5 out of 9. This is either by them not incubating properly, or the eggs cracking.

One good thing about hatching in the winter, they can use the winter to grow and mature, meaning in the spring, MORE EGGS!