There are a lot of posts sprinkled throughout about experiences with brooding hens, so I thought it might be wise to have a dedicated thread, to help mself, AND any other newbies to world of raising chickens.
So, to start, I have 4 EE hens, and I love them dearly!~ The Queen of the Coops is Cher. And lately, her behavior has changed.
Being new to raising chickens, I read as much as possible on these forums. I've tried to share what I've learned with others who are new to raising chickens. Once, I replied to a person and suggested that her hen was, based on the description given, being broody. However, one person responded to my post in a manner that felt rude, and implied that I was an idiot who had not business giving advice to anyone. (As a result, I stayed away from this site for several months, and when I did return, I held back from adding my two cents).
However, now I have a hen behaving in a way that, to my understanding, means she is "broody". She is hording the eggs from the other hens, too, and sitting on them as well. My daughter and I take them away as soon as we can, and still, she sits inside the coop, refusing to leave her nest. She sure looks like she's brooding about something, so if this isn't being "broody", I still think she's being moody!
She is an EE... and somewhere in the forums I read that they are rarely ever broody as they are not the "type" to be so.
So, my questions are:
Is she being "broody"
Is this typical for EEs?
When should I worry?
Would she behave differently if the eggs were fertile? and if yes, how?
What can I do to help end it? She seems miserable!
I hope others can add their thoughts about EE broodiness, as well as provide info to owners of other breeds as well.
So, to start, I have 4 EE hens, and I love them dearly!~ The Queen of the Coops is Cher. And lately, her behavior has changed.
Being new to raising chickens, I read as much as possible on these forums. I've tried to share what I've learned with others who are new to raising chickens. Once, I replied to a person and suggested that her hen was, based on the description given, being broody. However, one person responded to my post in a manner that felt rude, and implied that I was an idiot who had not business giving advice to anyone. (As a result, I stayed away from this site for several months, and when I did return, I held back from adding my two cents).
However, now I have a hen behaving in a way that, to my understanding, means she is "broody". She is hording the eggs from the other hens, too, and sitting on them as well. My daughter and I take them away as soon as we can, and still, she sits inside the coop, refusing to leave her nest. She sure looks like she's brooding about something, so if this isn't being "broody", I still think she's being moody!
She is an EE... and somewhere in the forums I read that they are rarely ever broody as they are not the "type" to be so.
So, my questions are:
Is she being "broody"
Is this typical for EEs?
When should I worry?
Would she behave differently if the eggs were fertile? and if yes, how?
What can I do to help end it? She seems miserable!
I hope others can add their thoughts about EE broodiness, as well as provide info to owners of other breeds as well.
