Broody Broo Ha Ha

[Kim95037]

So I had one silkie go broody so I gave her an egg to sit on, then my other silkie got broody and they fought over the egg. So I got another egg for my other silkie and then one silkie would hog both of the eggs. So I picked up my black silkie (Samantha) and put her in her own nest with her own egg but then she left the egg and went back to the original nest with my other silkie! For some reason they both just have to be in THAT nest. So I decided to think about it overnight on what to do. When I came home from work Samantha decided to sit on an egg my bantam easter egger Tabitha laid in different nest. Cool! Problem solved right? Now all of a sudden tonight when I go to close the coop up, Tabitha is sitting on the egg that she had laid that Samantha was sitting on and Samantha was in the middle nest with NO egg. Poor thing. So I tried to move Tabitha to my other coop with her egg but that didnt work. She wants to be in THAT OTHER nest. She practically screamed at me. So then I put an egg for Samantha to sit on in the middle nest. Now I have THREE broody chickens each with their own egg. Is that going to work? I cant believe Tabitha all of a sudden out of the blue wants to sit on an egg. The only chickens Ive ever had to go broody are my silkies. I have 3 chicken coops and 7 chickens and six of them now are all in one coop. Poor Penelope is all by herself now. She migrated over to the one Tabitha was sleeping in from her original coop that she shared with Emily after I discovered Emily was an Elmo and had to find a home for him. Has anyone ever had three different chickens broody at the same time? Will they be nice to each others chicks if they dont all hatch at the same time? (which they probably wont). Good greif.

 

[Judy]

Oh my! Crazy chicken antics. There is just no way to know til the time comes. I once had 3 hens share some chicks, taking turns setting on the eggs and mothering the chicks. I've had a hen stop being broody entirely when I moved her and her nest (no eggs) after dark, the way you're supposed to do it. I've read how the rooster may take over the mothering. The last couple times, I managed to get the mama in an area by herself before I put the eggs for hatching under her. That actually went well, til they hatched. If I hadn't let mama and chicks out to live with the flock, I think they'd have hurt themselves trying to get out. One thing, they don't seem to care whether they are sitting on eggs or golf balls, or even nothing at all. Even though they will steal each others' eggs or lay in someone else's nest. It can be endlessly funny -- if you don't have a bunch of money tied up in the eggs!

 

[CAjerseychick]

I feel your pain! I have 2 hens fighting over the same clutch of eggs! When i tried to split the eggs up in half and move 1 broody to a dog crate, she left the crate and the eggs so recombined the eggs into one clutch in the nest box-- and the next time that broody got off to eat, the dog crate broody stole back the eggs and has sat ever since! Shes my biggest hen (Jersey Giants) so no one is able to get into the nest box (we have 5 more for the other 9 hens)... I think the other Broody is starting up another clutch out in the bushes as my egg production went from 8 eggs daily to like 3 or 4.....
So we will see how it goes....
I like that hens can share chick raising.... though, sounds safer that way for chick integration into the Flock....