How to Hatch Out Chicken Eggs With a Setting Hen

Raising chickens means that eventually a hen will want to set and hatch out eggs. Using a hen as a chicken incubator is good way to get new stock instead of looking for baby chicks for sale through chicken hatcheries, and can be a great way to teach children some of life's lessons. Hatching out chicken eggs isn't for the faint of heart and definitely will require lots of time and planning.

Things You'll Need

• A setting hen
• A nest box
• fertile eggs
• straw to line the nest
• a large box lined with newspaper
• chick starter feed
• a suitable pen and run
• your time

Instructions

1. Get ready for the chicken incubator process and make plans. If the hen house where the hen will incubate the eggs is unheated, it is important to wait till the weather warms before hatching eggs. Baby chicks and hatching eggs cannot take any cold or very much excessive heat, so plan to do this at the right time of the year. Wait till nighttime temps stay above the mid 60's and before daily highs stay in the upper 90's. The cold is more dangerous than the heat, but waiting too late in the season may mean the baby chicks won't be old enough to ride out the next winter unless they are in a heated hen house. It is also necessary to wait till a hen decides to set or go broody as it is impossible to make a hen set. Plan for where she will set the eggs. She will need a secure nestbox in the dry, out of the wind, that the other hens cannot get into, and that is easy to clean and disinfect. I find that one around 18 inches square, about a foot deep, and about 3 foot off the ground is best. It will be easier to guard against ants and predators. A sectioned off area of a nestbox in the hen house can be used as long as it can be opened when needed and the other hens can be kept out. The hen will happier if she is still near the rest of the flock and not put in a totally strange place.

2. Watch for a hen to want to set. She will get broody and want to stay on the nest and she will puff herself up and cluck when off the nest. Be sure the hen is even tempered and willing to be handled by people. You don't want her so skittish that she runs away and abandons her nest. A larger hen means more eggs can be placed under her, but small banty hens can make some of the best mothers. If more than one hen in the flock gets broody, decide on one to be the chicken incubator of the eggs and use the other as a fallback. If there is room, set up the second hen with some fake plastic or wooden eggs and let her set on them while the first hen is incubating the real eggs. If something happens to the first hen the eggs can be given to the second hen to finish the hatching. Unless there are separate chicken pens for them to raise their chicks, don't set more than one hen at a time. The hens are very territorial and will fight and kill each other's baby chicks.

3. Collect eggs for hatching or buy fertile eggs. If there is a rooster in the flock then eggs the hens produce can be used, or fertile hatching eggs can be bought from a chicken hatchery or online. Regular store bought eggs are not fertile. Collect the eggs over a period of about a week and pick eggs that are clean, hard shelled, medium sized, and that have not been refrigerated. Do not wash the eggs, just brush any dirt off them and store them at room temperatures. A large hen can set some 20 eggs, but don't give her more than she can cover.

4. Once the hen, eggs, nestbox, housing, and dates are all set, then things are ready to set it all up. Clean and disinfect the nestbox with a mild cleaner and let it air out before filling it with fresh straw. Mark one side of each of the eggs with a pencil to be able to tell if they are being turned each day by the hen or for doing it manually. Place the eggs in the nestbox and let the hen walk over to them and settle herself down. Don't give her food or water in the box. Food will only attract rodents and ants and she may get the eggs wet causing them to cool. See that she can cover all the eggs, if not remove some of them. Mark a calendar for the 21 days it will take for the eggs to hatch even though it usually take a day or two longer because they first have to come up to temp before starting to develop chicks. Let the hen stay on the eggs for two or three days without taking her off. Check on her twice a day to look for broken eggs or other problems. After the first few days take her off when checking the eggs and give her food and water. She may peck so watch those hands and don't be alarmed about her large stinky droppings. They are normal so just have a shovel nearby to get rid of them. She can stay off the nest for 15 to 20 minutes without danger of the eggs cooling. Don't scare her or get her excited and after a few days she will come to you rather then having to be chased to be put back on the nest. Let her walk onto the nest and settle down. Check the eggs each day to be sure they are turned, if they aren't, the embryo will stick to the side of the shell and die. If the nest is off the ground spray beneath it to control ants and dust the hen with 5% sevin to control mites if she has them. After the first two weeks it is possible to candle the eggs to see if they are developing, just don't let them cool.

5. Be aware of some problems that may have to be faced. If any of the eggs crack get rid of them immediately. If an egg breaks, it is imperative to clean any dirtied eggs, the nestbox, and the hen of any egg material or it will cause the other eggs to go bad. This where a second setting hen can come in handy. Place any clean eggs under the second fallback hen while cleaning the dirty ones and everything else. Clean the hen first, use warm water and mild dish detergent on her breast feathers. Be sure she is rinsed off well and totally dry. It is important to work quickly so the dirty eggs don't cool. Wash them in warm water only, dry carefully, and place under a hen as soon as possible. Next replace the straw and clean the nestbox if needed. Put all the eggs back and let the hen take over. Another problem is if another hen gets in nest. They may fight and break several eggs. She may also lay new eggs and this is where the pencil marks made earlier will come in handy. If the hen gives up and won't stay on the nest(very rare) and there is no fallback hen, there is nothing that can be done unless it is only a day or so before the hatching date. If this is so, then it may be possible to place a light over the eggs and finish the hatching. Keep a thermometer on top of the eggs and don't let the temperature get above 103 degrees. If it will be longer before they hatch, a light for warmth will not be enough, because the humidity has to be just right also. The eggs do not have to be turned after the 18th day. A local farmers co-op may have a commercial incubator that can be bought to finish the hatching with.

6. As the hatching date gets close, have a chicken pen and run for the mother and her new young ones. Get a large box and line it with several layers of newspaper to place the chicks in after they hatch. Keep this box in the house with a light, water, and chick starter feed for the babies. The chicks will not all hatch at the same time. It may take 3 days before they are all out and active. The first ones to hatch will dry and become active and this may cause the hen to want to leave the nest before the total hatching is through. It is necessary to take the early hatching chicks away from her to keep her settled. This will mean that they need to be out of her ear range. In the warm house is the best place to keep them. Watch out for cats and dogs, and don't let the little kids love them to death. As they hatch, don't be tempted to help them out of the shell and for these final few days don't take the hen off the nest. After the third day any remaining eggs are no good and rotten. Be warned they are best buried or disposed of in a far off place because they really stink. Gases will build up in them and can cause them to explode so be very careful when handling them. Now all the chicks can be given back to momma hen if you are going to let her raise them.
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Tips & Warnings

• A chicken pen of about 20 sq. ft.(5x4 foot)is large enough to raise a hen with group of 12 to 20 chicks till they are two to three month old.

• The baby chicks need to kept away from the other chickens for the first month at least so they won't be pecked on or get diseases early on.

• A chicken pen up off the ground is best so droppings fall away and predators are not such a problem.

• Put it inside your existing chicken yard to have double protection from predators.

• You are more than likely going to have baby chicks die from: being stepped on or crushed, not hatching out completely, even the hen may turn on one and kill it, so be ready to face this fact and help your kids get through it.