Red / Gold learning curve

Seacapt

In the Brooder
Jun 30, 2021
4
16
24
So last year my daughter started bringing home eggs to incubate . We successfully raised 7 chicks to young adults. I built a 20 x20 x8 enclosure and a cute house for them. Several escaped (hopefully living wild now) and two went to the owner of the parent birds . This left us with a pair. One day last Fall our hen for reasons I don't understand killed her brother.
This Spring I got 4 eggs from a non related pair of birds and hatched 1 chick which appears to be a boy. Spent the last 4 weeks nursing him back from a bout of wry neck. He seems to be doing well now so I posted my vitamin / feed regiment on a wry neck thread. I plan to keep him in a separate pen until he is full size so our hen doesn't peck him to death.
A couple days ago the year old hen went broody on a clutch of unfertilized eggs. She won't move off them , is defensive and won't eat even when I put her favorite treats in the house with her. Should I be concerned? Should I remove the clutch of eggs or just let her do her thing? We had been pulling her eggs until recently but between work and nursing the little guy we got behind on egg harvesting.
 
So last year my daughter started bringing home eggs to incubate . We successfully raised 7 chicks to young adults. I built a 20 x20 x8 enclosure and a cute house for them. Several escaped (hopefully living wild now) and two went to the owner of the parent birds . This left us with a pair. One day last Fall our hen for reasons I don't understand killed her brother.
This Spring I got 4 eggs from a non related pair of birds and hatched 1 chick which appears to be a boy. Spent the last 4 weeks nursing him back from a bout of wry neck. He seems to be doing well now so I posted my vitamin / feed regiment on a wry neck thread. I plan to keep him in a separate pen until he is full size so our hen doesn't peck him to death.
A couple days ago the year old hen went broody on a clutch of unfertilized eggs. She won't move off them , is defensive and won't eat even when I put her favorite treats in the house with her. Should I be concerned? Should I remove the clutch of eggs or just let her do her thing? We had been pulling her eggs until recently but between work and nursing the little guy we got behind on egg harvesting.
I would collect all the eggs, and keep collecting them until she stops laying for this season. Disrupt her nest sites each time she tries to make a new one, cover them with something or block her from getting to the new nest's.

When introducing the male to her, put both in a pen that is 'new' to each, otherwise, either the hen or the cockbird will think that it's their  pen. Especially, males will defend their pen against all intruders, including hens....but hens can be territorial too!...preferably, do the transfer in the dark of night. That way each will be on equal terms in a pen that is new to both birds.
 
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