about a broody.......

[raimnel]

I was just wondering............ If you have a broody in a nest with no eggs would she get out of the nest and lay an egg in a different nest?......................

Thank you

 

[FortWorthChicks]

When they go broody they stop laying eggs. She could switch nest to the one with an egg in it.

 

[fordmommy]

when I took my broody's eat away (not fertile) she went into a different nest with eggs in it. (still not fertile) So I bought her fertile eggs.

 

[vtara16]

I will be bringing my boody fertile eggs as well. First time, so I am a little nervous. Not sure what to expect or plan when the chicks arrive.

any advice?

 

[raimnel]

I never hatched any eggs! But I can't wait, I may grab a chicken, stuff her in the nest and tell her not to move till I see chicks.

If a broody doesn't get off the nest and go lay an egg in another nest???? Then that means my other silkie is laying

come on eggs lets start movin, come on hen lets get to being broody!! OH! patience would be nice, but I'm still am not praying for it!!!!!

 

[mygroomshop]

How do you know if your hen is "broody"? Do all hens do this? Can you do things to make them sit on their eggs or does it just happen to some and not others? I am so interested in this but don't know much! Thank you

 

[Barry Natchitoches]

Quote:
Oh, if ONLY we could control broodyness!


The hen, herself, must decide if/when she is going to go broody. There is nothing that you can do to encourage a hen to go broody, and it is VERY DIFFICULT to get a hen that wants to go broody to change her mind.


Broodiness is regulated internally by hormones. When her female "broody" hormones get to a high enough level in her little body, she begins to do the things that only a broody hen will do.


She will begin to pluck out her feathers underneath on her belly, because she wants the eggs (and later the little chicks) to be kept right next to her body. It's warmer that way, and she instinctively knows this.


And she will begin to sit on "her" nest (the one she claims for herself) 24/7, only getting off the nest long enough to eat, drink and poo. Even then, she does all of that one single time a day, to minimize her time away from her eggs.


If you touch her, or get too close to her, or -- heaven forbid -- reach underneath her to get "her" eggs, she will growl at you with a special and very distinctive sound that you KNOW means that she does not approve! The only time I have ever heard one of my chickens make that sound is my broody hen, and she only makes that sound when she's broody and feels I'm invading her territory.


Some breeds are more prone to go broody. I've read that silkie hens often go broody. My little Momma is a buff orpington, another breed that is known for broodiness.


But not all young ladies of a certain breed will go broody. I've had six buff orpingtons in total since I began raising chickens two years ago (three have been lost to predators, so only three are still with us). Of those six, only one little lady has ever gone broody. But she has done it twice thus far. And believe me, she does it according to HER schedule, not mine.


One thing -- when they go broody, they quit laying eggs. That's why alot of people will try to break them from their broodiness.


But I guess I'm just a softy. When Momma goes broody, I just don't have the heart to break her of the broodiness. So as a result, I've got some little chicks that I never planned on residing in the big henhouse right now.