Broody Again 1 Month Apart

5OneChick

Chirping
Premium Feather Member
Jul 17, 2023
52
59
71
San Gabriel Valley CA.
It’s been barely a month, and our 1y.o. silkie, Fluffy, is back in the nesting box. Returned from 10 day vacation and found 9 eggs under her even though house/chicken sitter was tending to (our 10 hens total) and collecting eggs daily.
We no longer have a rooster so can’t give her fertilized eggs to sit on. Nor do we want additional chickens yet.
  1. Do we discard those nine eggs? It was 80* one of the days.
  2. Do we try to break her broodiness asap?
  3. Could she be collecting & bringing eggs to ‘her’ nest box? We saw other hens (standard breeds) lay right next to her during her last broody period as well as bully her out of box until they were finished laying.
  4. Is it common for hens to go broody so quickly after finishing a broody session? Last time we let her sit on 5 likely fertilized eggs but after 35+ days removed eggs and her from the coop.
I feel bad, clearly she has a strong instinct to be a mother hen. But her personality doesn’t seem ready. I’d describe her as immature and needy. She hollers or wales until we come out when she doesn’t know where the rest of the flock is. She also doesn’t really stand up for herself.

All input welcome 🤗
 
I'd toss the eggs, and would break her broodiness. Other hens are likely laying eggs in her nest site. Yes, some silkies are perpetually broody - allowing them to raise a brood can lengthen the time between broody sessions, but I have had some silkies that raised 5 broods in a season.
 
#1 You could boil them to feed back to the chickens.

#2 I would.

#3 Some hens know the trick and will collect eggs. Some of mine had me very surprised doing it.

#4 Silkies are known for being broody almost nonstop.
She hollers or wales until we come out when she doesn’t know where the rest of the flock is.
She might be a little disorientated and need a haircut in order to allow for free view.
 
#1 You could boil them to feed back to the chickens.

#2 I would.

#3 Some hens know the trick and will collect eggs. Some of mine had me very surprised doing it.

#4 Silkies are known for being broody almost nonstop.

She might be a little disorientated and need a haircut in order to allow for free view.
Thank you for addressing each concern.

Thought I’ve read that cutting some feathers can actually hurt the chicken or even cause bleeding. Providing better visibility of her surroundings seems more pleasant for her as well as safety issue.
Appreciate your time 🙏🏻
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom