broody chicken

[swjfos]

I have 3 hens and 1 is sitting in her egg laying box all the time but she isnt laying. My other two arent laying either. When i pick her up snd make her get out of box she is puffed out real big and then jumps back in the laying box. Is this normal behavior?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Sounds broody.
If you want chicks, put some fertile eggs under her.
If not, put her in a wire bottom cage for 2 or 3 days with food and water and all will be back to normal.

 

[swjfos]

Thank you chicken canoe

 

[TwoCrows]

Yep, that is broodiness. They growl at you when you try to move them, when they do come out they cluck cluck cluck all over the place and will stay in the nest box and not lay.

Great to have you aboard and enjoy BYC!

 

[swjfos]

Ha ha thats just what they are doing.
Cluk cluk cluk. Hee hee thanks. Twocrows.
Do u know when they might start laying again?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

A broody hen won't lay until at least a month after her chicks hatch because they have to care for them. So the sooner you break her the faster she'll return to production.
A hen broken from being broody will likely not lay for a month or longer. She also won't lay for the entire time of being broody.

 

[americanchicker]

I have a silkie who became broody mid winter and now its been a couple of weeks. I've been taking the others eggs from under her and throwing her out in the run from time to time. The problem is I'm in NY, and we've had such a bad winter of snow there is no way of really kicking her out of the coop as I've had to keep them locked in there a lot because of the bad weather. Now yesterday I noticed it looks like she has mites, i see white bands on the top of her fluffy head feathers. I have read this can be common in broody chickens since they tend to not go out and dust bathe since they spend most of their time in the nesting box. I don't have a wire cage, nor the room to put her anywhere in it, should I just put wire down in the nesting box? My only fear is that then I will be collecting eggs from the others all over the place b/c they will not want to lay there either. Its been a few weeks now and she hasn't broke the broodiness. And now with the mites I'm afraid my little flock of 4 will be infested. Its raining today, but tomorrow we plan on going out and cleaning out the inside and outside of the coop and run to control any mites in there. I have some DE, should I also put some wood ashes in the run area? I heard this helps with mites.

Thanks!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

The wire in the nest won't help. The idea of a wire cage is that cool air needs to get to the hen's underside. As long as she can keep it warm, she'll stay broody. You can just get a few sticks, some wire and some hardware cloth to make a temporary cage.
We always suspended the homemade cages from the ceiling.

You 'll probably need to treat the entire flock and coop for mites.
Change the bedding and get some 5% Sevin onto the floor, roosts, cracks, crevices, nests, etc.. Then dust all the birds twice at a one week interval.

 

[americanchicker]

The wire in the nest won't help. The idea of a wire cage is that cool air needs to get to the hen's underside. As long as she can keep it warm, she'll stay broody. You can just get a few sticks, some wire and some hardware cloth to make a temporary cage.
We always suspended the homemade cages from the ceiling.

You 'll probably need to treat the entire flock and coop for mites.
Change the bedding and get some 5% Sevin onto the floor, roosts, cracks, crevices, nests, etc.. Then dust all the birds twice at a one week interval.

Thank you! We've had a break in the weather its between 30s and 40s so I guess this wknd would be a good one to put her in the cage, i've just been afraid of the silkie getting cold in the single digit temps we've had all winter, not huddled with the rest of the gang. I guess I can have hubby construct a cage and hang it from the coop ceiling as we're cleaning it out. You recommend the 5% Sevin over the DE?

 

[gander007]