A Broody Leghorn, Who Would Have Thought It Possible?!

High Roost Ranch

The Chicken Whisperer
15 Years
Dec 15, 2008
1,231
21
296
St Tammany Parish, Folsom, Louisiana
So the first day I noticed her setting, I thought uh oh, she's injured. She picked a spot on the floor of the feed stall underneath my saddles. She let me know she was fine, but to back away slowly and she meant business. Several days later, she's still on the nest. Every day I checked her, I expected her to have left the nest because as we all know, Leghorns are the last thing to go broody. They are so anti-mothers that I'm convinced the breed wouldn't continue if not for artificial incubation. Or so I thought. Amazingly, she sat tight on her eggs the entire time, acting no less diligent and committed than my true broody type breeds, and this morning when I went to check her, she had that "I've got chicks" purr noise going on. I thought no way in heck, but sure enough, I saw one chick peeking its head out. So I tossed some chick starter to her and when I came back with the camera, she has at least 3 chicks. She's still got more eggs under her, I don't know if they'll hatch or not as they belong to another brown hen that laid eggs in her nest.

But here she is with her chicks. For proof, ya know, since I wouldn't believe it without photos myself, LOL.
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Has anyone else had a leghorn go broody and actually hatch her clutch? In the 7 yrs I've had leghorns, this is a first. We had them when I was a kid too, about 100 hens, and I don't remember a single one ever setting on her eggs.
 
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Momma Hen started with 12 eggs but during hatch when they started pipping we lost 2 so we have 9 little babies..the last 1 she was off the nest too long and it didn't make it out of the shell.She did better this year than any of my "broody" hens.I just dare anyone touch those chicks! She lets us get her food and water but it's with the Momma eye the entire time. ..kind of like this
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All of hers are white leghorn splash Plymouth Rock cross
We also used to have a buff leghorn that just stayed broody..never laid an egg I mean never not a single blasted egg... just raised chicks and when it was over looked for more eggs.It really annoys me when I read on these boards leghorns never go broody especially by those that don't own one.
BTW Adorable chicks
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Congrats, Julie! I just rescued a Leghorn pullet, so I'm stoked that she might "earn her keep" around here! You give me hope!
 

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