How long does a chicken sit on an egg and what should a poultry farmer do when a hen sits on eggs?

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Some people think that it is not necessary to know how long a chicken sits on an egg. Like, she herself feels how long it takes her to hatch the chicks. And you should not interfere in this process and think about how much the chicken sits on the egg. But very often the timing of incubation plays an important role.

How long does a chicken sit on an egg

Sometimes there can be such a turn: the eggs under the mug will turn out to be of poor quality or freeze. And the chicken, after serving the allotted time, will continue to incubate them. Some chickens may become so emaciated during this period that their he alth will be affected. Sometimes a bird can even die if a person does not intervene in this process in time. Therefore, every poultry farmer should know how long a chicken sits on an egg: 21 days. Although plus or minus a couple of days is not a deviation from the norm. The fresher the egg, the sooner it will hatch into a chick. Elevated temperature also contributes to faster maturation of the embryos.

Can I put eggs of other birds under a chicken?

If a hen sits on a nest with a small number of eggs, the poultry farmer should discreetly place eggs of other hens or those bought at a poultry farm under it. Usually the mother hen takes other people's eggs well and sits on them regularly. You also need to know how much the chicken sits on the eggs, if the poultry farmer decides to bring ducklings or goslings along with the chickens. A simple mathematical calculation calculates the difference in the output of chicken offspring and, for example, duck. Ducks sit for 28 days, and chickens - 21. Therefore, duck eggs are laid a week earlier than chicken ones. Then the brood will turn out to be friendly, almost simultaneous.

How to “prohibit” a mother hen from hatching?

Sometimes chickens sit on their eggs at the wrong time, towards autumn. This is fraught with the fact that the young are then difficult to raise, and in winter the chickens do not gain the desired height and weight. To prevent this from happening, you should carefully monitor that the hens sit in the spring. The same individuals who think of hatching chickens in the second half of summer should be removed from the eggs and placed in the cellar for a couple of days. This usually helps. Or put ready-made chicks under it at night - the chicken will take them for her children and begin to lead, leaving her to sit on the nest.

What needs to be done to make a chicken want to sit on the clutch?

There is a way among the people to force the chicken to start hatching at the moment when the poultry farmer needs it. Selected femaleseparated from the rest of the chickens, for example put in a cage. On the first day, she is given ordinary fresh baker's yeast along with food, rolled into balls - about 50 grams. On the following days, the chicken should be fed abundantly with protein feed: corn, fish, meat. It is advisable to give live earthworms more often. After 10 days, she is released to the rest of the bird. Usually, immediately the rooster begins to actively "trample" the new one. As a result, very soon, within a week, the chicken fluffs its plumage and begins to cackle. This is a sign that she is ready to hatch. Such a chicken sits on eggs very well. And the weight gained during the special fattening has a beneficial effect on her he alth.