Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[chooks01]

I may need to do that as well with pearl next time she's broody most of the time lol those babies are her second in a year!!!

 

[Teila]

Aaaw chooks01 those bubs are adorable and mumma looks so proud.

Cwrite you are lucky you can put your broody’s in the same brooder .. no chance here, feathers would fly

I do not leave my broody’s in the breaker overnight and at dusk, with the nest boxes blocked off, pop them up on the roost with their flock mates. Then, in the morning, put them back in the broody breaker before opening up the nest boxes again. I also let them free range with the gals in the afternoon with the coop and run closed so no temptation.

I do this for a few reasons .. like you, it feels a bit mean to leave them overnight alone; I am not totally happy with the security of the broody breaker which may be knocked over by a determined predator and they are on full display; lastly, giving them those social moments means that when they do go back, less chance of the pecking order being too out of whack and squabbles to get it back in line.

Just my thoughts which work for me; every flock is different.

If you let them out and they race back to the nest, they are not broken

My gals can take anywhere from 2 to 7 days depending on who it is and how determined she is.

So, I went back to the thread in which I got beaten up … glutton for punishment? Nope, I will tread carefully but I refuse to be chased out of a thread which I find interesting and in which I am entitled to an opinion.

 

[cwrite]

Thanks Teila. I guess I thought that they stayed in there for 3 days straight. It makes it a lot easier if they can have time out mingling to see if they head back to the nest. Considering that they have more space in the broody breaker than the nestbox they have been sharing for a while they should get on just fine. I'm sure all my other ladies will breathe a sigh of relief when they can lay without an audience of two & no space to stand, much less sit. The other nest box remains empty as always.

 

[Anniebee]

There's no doubt about it --- Christmas often brings on things we simply do NOT want to happen.

Why is that ? .... happens often, ( too often for me over the years ).

My Mandy Welsummer is not at all well. Her comb has lightened off to pink in just one day - she is lethargic, moving slowly ( just today ) has put herself to bed in the afternoon ( bed being a nesting box that has never been used as such ) .... and is not interested in eating much, except what she is foraging from the ground ( including some scratch mix I threw for the two big girls - in case it tempted her to eat. ) She has been drinking water though.

When I picked her up to bring her inside, she squatted ... so was easy to handle. But when her head was down just a little, she let go some dribble of water from her beak - did not retch or stretch her neck - just let it dribble out.. The last egg she laid was 2 days ago, but that is nothing unusual for her. She is 3 years old, but is the first of the 3 to back off laying, just a little ( 3 maybe 4 eggs per week - the other 2 produce 5-6 eggs per week ).

I have treated her with a little olive oil dripped down her throat, which she gave me back - when I picked her up. ( it was not a vomit as such - just another letting go of liquid ). Very warm compresses on and around the vent ( which is pink and healthy looking ) .... warm compresses on what would be her belly, and olive oil up the vent. ( I probably should have used Vaseline, which I have done before for another ). Her comb brightened to red while she was getting her TLC, and she returned to the run, to pick at some scratch mix on the ground, before retiring again to early bed.

( It is almost 9.30 pm now so it is time for their sleep anyway ).

I am at a loss to know what is wrong ( aren't we all with chickens ? ) .... her crop is what I would call empty. It does not feel like a soft balloon. And I doubt totally, that it is impacted in any way.

She is carrying her tail downwards - unless I disturb her, and then it raises while she walks or trots off elsewhere. Stopped, dropped the tail - looked around her, pecked aimlessly at a leaf or a tree trunk, and had a look at what might be of interest on the ground ... but that's it, this arvo. Her eyes are still bright and as they should be --- she has not got the sniffles or any sign of respiratory problems. No mucus. She passed a very small bowel action while in the laundry, that was mostly scattered urate - and several little bits of poop ( that frankly looked like something from a possum, although not greenish -- a normal brown colour ). I have given them their new straw - to tempt her to lay tomorrow ( I hope ). I am also concerned that she might be egg bound.

However, I cannot feel anything but a soft squishiness in her underneath and nether regions. I have gently massaged her belly and her vent area. I have also massaged her crop - upwards towards the neck - very gently.

One on line help site, said if sour crop is suspected - to remove all food and water for the chicken for 24 hours. ?? And then introduce some cooked egg plus shell ground up in yoghurt. I have searched BYC with little success. If she is still with us in the morning, I will move her inside,
and keep food and water away from her for 24 hours. ?? She was troubled by the rise in temperature today, whereas the other 2 were not. But she certainly was not gasping, her beak was only slightly open.

Any further suggestions please ? .... I hope I can put them to some use, if you do have suggestions. Have more or less accepted that it just might be 'her time' ... I hope I am wrong. Her keel is the same as Molly's so she has not lost weight ( actually she is as heavy as she usually is ). But she
has always been a very very big chicken. .... Her friend Molly RIR has somewhat ignored her today, too. With big heat promised for the weekend, I think she will be spending time inside with us, if that is to be.

Anniebee .....
and yes, I am

 

[Fancychooklady]

Sounds like you have been giving it a bit of thought Annie. I would be inclined to worm her . As for the poop, hot days can lead to watery poops. Hers the poop chart , poop can often help with the diagnosis .

http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/02/whats-scoop-on-chicken-poop-digestive.html

 

[Anniebee]

Sounds like you have been giving it a bit of thought Annie. I would be inclined to worm her . As for the poop, hot days can lead to watery poops. Hers the poop chart , poop can often help with the diagnosis .

http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/02/whats-scoop-on-chicken-poop-digestive.html

Thank you Fancy ... very much.

I wormed the girls about 6 days back ... ( you and I had a discussion here about it ) .... and Mandy is one of the two who wouldn't touch the worming mixture in the water. You advised not to dilute it in a whole heap of water, as that renders it ineffective. I could make up the worming mixture, to mix in with food ( bread and rice ) however, as she is not eating much at all, that would not be a plan. And I cannot syringe the worming mixture down her throat, in its' undiluted form. I doubt I could get tablets down her throat either - it was difficult enough giving a bit of olive oil. !!

She seems to be 'pancaking' ... in the nesting box, which is the furthest she can get from anything --- ( but it's never been used by them to lay eggs in - they sleep in it, and occasionally they will roost on hot nights !! ). But is showing no aggression to me at all, nor to her friend Molly. Molly is having a tough time trying to sit / lie down in the nesting box, as Mandy takes up 80% of the space at the moment - she has spread herself out. She half flew, half jumped off the washing machine ( when doing the TLC bit ) ... at one stage, and immediately pancaked herself on the floor. I thought she had hurt herself, but apparently had not. She also spread herself on the ground yesterday afternoon - normal position, not lying sideways or anything - and I thought it was because she is / was / maybe, sick. Such unusual behaviour for her.

She has never been broody before. And I have found on a BYC link, that when they become broody, their combs pale right off. Which is what has happened to her in one day - except for when inside, when the colour brightened back to red ???? Have also read on another thread here, the Welsummers definitely can go broody. I am SOOOO hoping that is all that is happening.

And it fits ( if that is the case ) to bring her inside - with only an offering of food and water - ( after 24 hours - to give whatever else might be troubling her a break ) .... to break her out of being broody. That's IF she is broody. Same idea as if my dog is not well ( rare ) --- off all food, only fresh water for 24 hours, then an introduction of rice - then rice plus chicken, then all that plus a little of her Black Hawk holistic dog dry, gradually getting back to square 1.

I can only try this .... it is 1 a.m. and I have just checked on her. She is hogging the nesting box, still alert - very docile ( well it is night time ) ... and I am hoping she has a go at me tomorrow --- which might prove what I am hoping for - broodiness ? .... Must say I have never heard of a docile, gentle broody before, and can find nothing on the Net about that.

Can a broody be all laid back and friendly - ? She is not and never has been a cuddly chicken.

The poop indicator did not show me anything that resembled the last poop I saw her have. Just have to keep on, keeping on, I guess.

Thanks again, and cheers --------

 

[cwrite]

I can only try this .... it is 1 a.m. and I have just checked on her. She is hogging the nesting box, still alert - very docile ( well it is night time ) ... and I am hoping she has a go at me tomorrow --- which might prove what I am hoping for - broodiness ? .... Must say I have never heard of a docile, gentle broody before, and can find nothing on the Net about that.

Can a broody be all laid back and friendly - ? She is not and never has been a cuddly chicken.

The poop indicator did not show me anything that resembled the last poop I saw her have. Just have to keep on, keeping on, I guess.

Thanks again, and cheers --------

Anniebee, I don't know about the water dribbling out of her beak, but if she is fluffed up then that is another indication that she is broody rather than sick. I've only had two chickens go broody & the repeat offender is a leghorn cross who isn't supposed to really go broody at all. She does this reptilian growl that is quite chilling when I go near her, but was easy to deter until I had another hen go broody who is completely different. Hagrid chats to her eggs & flops to the ground when I take her off the nest & is very easy going about the whole thing so I'm leaning towards thinking that you get as many broody types as hens. Hopefully your hen is broody rather than ill, especially if you are wanting a broody for eggs & won't have to try to get her to move on from wanting babies.

 

[Teila]

Gees Anniebee I am so sorry that you are going through this with Mandy.

As you know, I am not the expert on what ails chickens but thought I would share some thoughts regarding some of her symptoms.

Not interested in eating much: my broody’s will usually eat as much as they can in the short time they are away from the nest if I move them or if they take a break themselves.

She squatted: my broody’s do not squat as when they are broody, they are in no mood to submit.

Dribble of water from her beak: I have experienced this in the flock twice and both times it was impacted crop.

Carrying her tail downwards: not normally a sign with broody’s.

Yep, a broody can be all laid back and friendly .. While Cilla is a terror with her flock mates, she is fine with me .. no growling, no fluffing up, no nastiness whatsoever.

I hate to say it, but could it be egg peritonitis? I lost a bantam leghorn to egg peritonitis and the symptoms were similar to what you are describing.

This is the link to a helpful sheet which explains the subtle differences between egg bound and egg peritonitis:

http://luckyhensrescuenorthwest.weebly.com/egg-bound-henegg-peritonitis-help-sheet.html

I hope so very much that she is just broody

 

[appps]

Very cute babies chooks01 and Satay! A very cross Snowy and Hagrid are installed in the broody breaker. It's a great size for the two of them and raised so that there is airflow underneath their breasts. I've given them a treat and so far Snowy has not stopped pacing, except to eat. It seems a bit mean to leave them in there overnight, but it would be worse to leave them not eating properly indefinitely. I'm hoping it doesn't take as long as 3 days and they they give me some clues that they have stopped being broody seeing as they can't race back to the nest. How do I tell when they are over it given that there is no nest or eggs for them to hoard?

As long as you secure the nesting box so there is no way for them to get to it there's no reason they can't roost with everybody else at night. I actually think roosting is better than sitting like they would on a nest in a cage. My nesting box gets locked at 4:30 and broodies returned to the flock for a last wander and bedtime. Also prevents any squabbles caused by them being out of the pecking order too long. It also helps you know when they are over it, after about 3 days if they don't rush back to the nest after a quick feed in the morning when you let them out chances are they are done. If they are trying to get back on the nest in the morning you give them another day.

 

[appps]

Can a broody be all laid back and friendly -  ?    She is not and never has been a cuddly chicken.

The one we lost to the goshawk was the only one I've ever had that bit when broody. The worst I ever get from the others is a little fluff of the feathers and that errr sound they make. I can happily pat all mine on the nest and pick them up and move them without the slightest sign of aggression on their part. That includes Al who I can't hold or even catch normally. When broody though I can pick her up out of the nest and carry her in my arms while giving her a scratch on the head. Something would be impossible normally as she is far too flighty.