1st Time Brooding // No Eggs // Not eating, drinking, pooping // "Pseudo Egg"

[Limpin Nugget]

Good day! It's been a month since the disastrous 1st time egg bound laying and Nugget has been pretty productive the entire month except this past 3 days where she starts brooding. Since our roo, yes we got 3 new chickens, is still young and there's no roo to fertilize her eggs, we're sure that she'll not be hatching some eggs.

Anyway, she stopped laying an egg now that she's broody and had been laying on nothing until this morning, when she saw an egg, we bought at store, and started screeching for it and my sister decided to give it to her as a "prank". She has not eaten, drunk, and pooped all day. And has been laying on her "egg".

Will it be okay if we remove her in her coop tomorrow for a few minutes so she can do her necessities? I know that broody hens lay on their egg but she does not and has stopped laying eggs, is that okay? I'm pretty traumatized thinking that she may have another egg bound. And her pseudo egg hahahaha is it okay for her to have it???? Should we get a chick as her pseudo baby Sorry it's our first time taking care of chickens. And what advices can you give me?


Thank you all again for your help!!!

 

[aart]

we're sure that she'll not be hatching some eggs.

If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, IMO it's best to break her broodiness promptly.

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

I used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.

 

[swampfox440]

If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, IMO it's best to break her broodiness promptly.

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

I used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.
View attachment 2367455

Good post ! I have done the same in the past .

 

[Ridgerunner]

That's the way I break a broody with one exception. I don't let them out at all for 72 hours. If they aren't broken from being broody by then they go back in the broody buster. I just don't see what I gain by letting them out until they are broken except more work for me.

I know that broody hens lay on their egg but she does not and has stopped laying eggs, is that okay?

Not sure what the question is here. She does not lay on the egg? I'm just confused.

Should we get a chick as her pseudo baby

To me you have three choices. This depends on what you want, your goals for your chickens, not my goals or personal preferences. You can break her for being broody if you don't want any more chicks to raise now. We've discussed that.

You can find fertile eggs for her to hatch. If we knew your general location we might be able to help with finding fertile eggs and the hatching process but I don't know which state or country you are in, let alone which side of the equator so I have no idea about what kind of weather you are facing. You have no idea how many eggs will hatch if you set some.

You can try to find day old chicks to give to her. Most broody hens will accept really young chicks and raise them as their own. This doesn't always work so you have to be prepared to raise them yourself. For various reasons I strongly suggest you start with at least three if you try this.

If you decide to add more chicks, either by hatching or finding day-old chicks, you need the facilities to handle them, especially before they become adults. That takes more room than the standard 4 square feet in the coop you often see on here. You need to have a plan if some turn out to be boys. I don't now what your goals are for chickens or what your facilities look like so it has to be your decision.

Good luck!

 

[Limpin Nugget]

If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, IMO it's best to break her broodiness promptly.

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

I used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.
View attachment 2367455

Thank you so much! I will definitely do as you say. Good thing we have dog cages

 

[Limpin Nugget]

That's the way I break a broody with one exception. I don't let them out at all for 72 hours. If they aren't broken from being broody by then they go back in the broody buster. I just don't see what I gain by letting them out until they are broken except more work for me.

I know that broody hens lay on their egg but she does not and has stopped laying eggs, is that okay?

Not sure what the question is here. She does not lay on the egg? I'm just confused.

Should we get a chick as her pseudo baby

To me you have three choices. This depends on what you want, your goals for your chickens, not my goals or personal preferences. You can break her for being broody if you don't want any more chicks to raise now. We've discussed that.

You can find fertile eggs for her to hatch. If we knew your general location we might be able to help with finding fertile eggs and the hatching process but I don't know which state or country you are in, let alone which side of the equator so I have no idea about what kind of weather you are facing. You have no idea how many eggs will hatch if you set some.

You can try to find day old chicks to give to her. Most broody hens will accept really young chicks and raise them as their own. This doesn't always work so you have to be prepared to raise them yourself. For various reasons I strongly suggest you start with at least three if you try this.

If you decide to add more chicks, either by hatching or finding day-old chicks, you need the facilities to handle them, especially before they become adults. That takes more room than the standard 4 square feet in the coop you often see on here. You need to have a plan if some turn out to be boys. I don't now what your goals are for chickens or what your facilities look like so it has to be your decision.

Good luck!

Hi! I'm from Philippines and we actually got Nugget from an egg vendor who goes in our house to deliver eggs. She hatched due to over stock and she did it on her own, no mama or heat lamp, how it happened, no one knows. They just heard chirping and she was there, guess because it was summer during that time. Then the vendor didn't know what to do with her so we adopted her. She's a survivor

We're amateurs!!!! We don't know anything about raising her so she grew up with the dogs and in my room but she regularly go in out backyard to do her thing.

But I don't think we can afford more chicken so I might break her brood. I just hate and love that she would screech at everyone near her nesting box but when I come close she would coo and make cute noises and actually let me pet her. So yeah, Imma break it for her.