Any way to train my cheerleader chicken to pipe down?

[nuthatched]

Hi all, I have one hen, a scrappy, little Maran Nancy Holler, who insists on hanging around the next boxes and singing to the other hens while they're there laying (we call her the midwife), problem is, with 11 hens, she's in there hollering for a few hours a day and it's starting to wear on my nerves.
At first I thought she was telling the others the hurry up so she can use the Favorite Nestbox but she's there after she lays her egg. she hollers a few times for her own accomplishment and goes back to hollering at everyone else, most of my hens don't even sing the egg song because she's so good at it.
I've though about adding curtains to the boxes so she can't see the hens but I'm not certain that would work for her.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!

 

[sourland]

I'd try the curtains and cross my fingers.

 

[LaFleche]

Hi all, I have one hen, a scrappy, little Maran Nancy Holler, who insists on hanging around the next boxes and singing to the other hens while they're there laying (we call her the midwife), problem is, with 11 hens, she's in there hollering for a few hours a day and it's starting to wear on my nerves.
At first I thought she was telling the others the hurry up so she can use the Favorite Nestbox but she's there after she lays her egg. she hollers a few times for her own accomplishment and goes back to hollering at everyone else, most of my hens don't even sing the egg song because she's so good at it.
I've though about adding curtains to the boxes so she can't see the hens but I'm not certain that would work for her.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!

Team-building at its best!
But seriously, her behaviour leads me to think that you do not have a rooster and she tries to fill in and take over some of his duties.

 

[NatJ]

Hi all, I have one hen, a scrappy, little Maran Nancy Holler, who insists on hanging around the next boxes and singing to the other hens while they're there laying (we call her the midwife), problem is, with 11 hens, she's in there hollering for a few hours a day and it's starting to wear on my nerves.
At first I thought she was telling the others the hurry up so she can use the Favorite Nestbox but she's there after she lays her egg. she hollers a few times for her own accomplishment and goes back to hollering at everyone else, most of my hens don't even sing the egg song because she's so good at it.
I've though about adding curtains to the boxes so she can't see the hens but I'm not certain that would work for her.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!

Curtains sound like an idea worth trying.

Maybe offer something else to think about? I'm thinking something like a pile of compost in the run to scratch through. Or dirt. Or a bale of straw to pull apart.

I don't know how you feel about eating a chicken you know, but that would be one other solution, depending on how irritating the sound is to you.

 

[nuthatched]

Team-building at its best!
But seriously, her behaviour leads me to think that you do not have a rooster and she tries to fill in and take over some of his duties.

I do have a rooster, but he typically only escorts his favorites from the coop, I don't think she ranks high enough for his attention....I wish he'd tell her to shut up.

Curtains sound like an idea worth trying.

Maybe offer something else to think about? I'm thinking something like a pile of compost in the run to scratch through. Or dirt. Or a bale of straw to pull apart.

I don't know how you feel about eating a chicken you know, but that would be one other solution, depending on how irritating the sound is to you.

She's a good chicken, just noisy, I've though about sending her to freezer camp but every time she I think about it seriously, she shuts up for a week.

 

[LaFleche]

I do have a rooster, but he typically only escorts his favorites from the coop, I don't think she ranks high enough for his attention....I wish he'd tell her to shut up.

She's a good chicken, just noisy, I've though about sending her to freezer camp but every time she I think about it seriously, she shuts up for a week.

Will she get broody if you prepared a nice nest with some fake eggs to sit on?

 

[aart]

Hi all, I have one hen, a scrappy, little Maran Nancy Holler, who insists on hanging around the next boxes and singing to the other hens while they're there laying (we call her the midwife), problem is, with 11 hens, she's in there hollering for a few hours a day and it's starting to wear on my nerves.
At first I thought she was telling the others the hurry up so she can use the Favorite Nestbox but she's there after she lays her egg. she hollers a few times for her own accomplishment and goes back to hollering at everyone else, most of my hens don't even sing the egg song because she's so good at it.
I've though about adding curtains to the boxes so she can't see the hens but I'm not certain that would work for her.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!

How old is this bird in weeks or months?
How long has she been laying?
How long has this behavior been going on?

Have had a few of these, they usually taper it off after a few weeks of coming into or back into lay....unless there is a traffic jam.

 

[theoldchick]

She's a good chicken, just noisy, I've though about sending her to freezer camp but every time she I think about it seriously, she shuts up for a week.

 

[NatJ]

She's a good chicken, just noisy, I've though about sending her to freezer camp but every time she I think about it seriously, she shuts up for a week.

Maybe you just need to keep thinking about it, and she'll stay quiet

 

[nuthatched]

Will she get broody if you prepared a nice nest with some fake eggs to sit on?

More likely my Lorps will be broody, they've been taking turns all winter.

How old is this bird in weeks or months?
How long has she been laying?
How long has this behavior been going on?

Have had a few of these, they usually taper it off after a few weeks of coming into or back into lay....unless there is a traffic jam.

She's a few weeks short of a year old, she's been laying since the beginning of October I think, I don't think very many of my hens took a winter break but she's been at it all winter.

Maybe you just need to keep thinking about it, and she'll stay quiet

She's clairvoyant!