Broody hen disrupting egg-laying?

[HenLuv]

After reading posts on broodiness, I am certain that is what my #3 Australorp is doing. However, I have gone a few days in a row now without ANY eggs, from any of my girls. Why are the other two not laying either?
#3 barely eats. I have taken her out a couple times a day to make sure she gets some food and water. I've even tried enticing her with her favorite: apples, but she takes only one or two small pieces from my hand. I'm beginning to worry now if she's broody as well as sick.
About the cage thing, I'm not quite sure how to manage that, but I will read on for more information. Next question is how to encourage the other two to get back to work while the one is in the time-out cage?

 

[azygous]

When I had a broody sitting on eggs and I neglected to isolate her from the regular layers, the hens mostly laid their eggs in the broody's nest, and she happily collected the extra eggs. Some broodys will actually steal the eggs from the other nests and put them in her own nest. Have you counted the eggs under your broody to see if there are the same number she began sitting on?

 

[aart]

Next question is how to encourage the other two to get back to work while the one is in the time-out cage?

Once the possible broody is out of the way, they will probably be back to using the nests.

First make sure she is broody, here are my go-to signs:
Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, does she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck(ticking bomb) sound on her way back to the nest?
If so, then she is probably broody and you'll have to decide how to manage it.

​

If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, IMO it's best to break her broodiness promptly.
the longer you wait to break her, the longer it might take.

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

I let her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.
Tho not necessary, a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.

 

[HenLuv]

Update: Since the weather will not allow me to try the dog cage today, I left my broody hen on her nest all morning, tending those wooden eggs. That freed up the bottom of two vertical nest boxes, so I placed the last of the wooden eggs there (all of which I'd removed yesterday morning in an attempt to get Broody to leave). Prissy (the dominant hen) laid a perfectly beautiful and welcomed egg in the bottom box, even while her broody sister occupied/guarded the top. I'm hoping that hen #2 will now follow #1's example.

 

[aart]

The answer to all of those is "yes". She is in there as I type, sitting on a pile of fake eggs. We have no rooster, so no chance of hatching.
Thanks so much for the pic of the dog pen! That helps a lot. I will have to place it outside of the coop (we have a smallish one because only 3 hens).
I will try all of those things.
Thanks again!

It's fine to have it out of the coop during the day, with weather and predator protection.
In the run maybe?
Do you have a safe place to put the crate during the night?

 

[HenLuv]

It's fine to have it out of the coop during the day, with weather and predator protection.
In the run maybe?
Do you have a safe place to put the crate during the night?

Yes, I several options to choose from, depending on the expected weather.

 

[All4Eggz]

Sometimes broodiness is contagious.. that may be the case.
Or maybe one or more are eating the eggs. If this is the case, make sure to buy crushed oyster shells or some source of calcium from your local feed store.

 

[Rooster Giddens]

I do try to mark the eggs accurately, and even keep an egg record book (for health monitoring, mostly). Although we have a camera pointed at the nest box, I will often go out to do a head count anyway, especially if I can't tell who is in there. Fortunately for me, they each have a particular style of egg! The dominant one's are always larger and bullet-shaped, #2's are smaller, tear-shaped, and pale, frequently with spots. #3's are large and rounder at the base, often paler than #1's. Having only 3 chickens sure helps.

Sounds to me you've got all your bases covered! Thanks for responding!

 

[HenLuv]

Once the possible broody is out of the way, they will probably be back to using the nests.

First make sure she is broody, here are my go-to signs:
Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, does she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck(ticking bomb) sound on her way back to the nest?
If so, then she is probably broody and you'll have to decide how to manage it.

​

If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, IMO it's best to break her broodiness promptly.
the longer you wait to break her, the longer it might take.

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

I let her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.
Tho not necessary, a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.
View attachment 2631073

The answer to all of those is "yes". She is in there as I type, sitting on a pile of fake eggs. We have no rooster, so no chance of hatching.
Thanks so much for the pic of the dog pen! That helps a lot. I will have to place it outside of the coop (we have a smallish one because only 3 hens).
I will try all of those things.
Thanks again!

 

[HenLuv]

When I had a broody sitting on eggs and I neglected to isolate her from the regular layers, the hens mostly laid their eggs in the broody's nest, and she happily collected the extra eggs. Some broodys will actually steal the eggs from the other nests and put them in her own nest. Have you counted the eggs under your broody to see if there are the same number she began sitting on?

They are all fake eggs -- white wooden ones to distinguish from the real brown ones. I've looked all over the yard, too, and haven't found any.