I have one very broody Barred Rock. Our rooster is long gone, but she's persistent. So now that the weather is hot, I've started kicking her off the nest a couple times a day to take eggs and to make sure she gets a drink of water and something to eat.
We had a dog come stay with us for a couple days. My chickens have never seen a dog, though they can hear them in the neighborhood. My husband brought our guest canine out to the yard to play while I was working in the coop and she made a bee line in our direction. She was well behaved, didn't bark, didn't lunge. But the startled chickens cowered in the far corner of their coop in a little nervous bunch, making worried hen noises. As DH is trying to get the dogs attention with a Frisbee, out of the corner of my eyes I see a blur of black feathers explode from the nest box. She stops in the center of the coop in front of the boxes, fluffs up in indignation and makes a cackling noise that can only be righteous anger. She spread her wings and rushed full speed in the direct of the startle dog, bouncing off the wire fence. She does this again and again and again. The dog is now a little concerned about this turn of events and starts barking and lunging in response. That throws all the chickens into an absolute flapping, leaping panic and suddenly my coop in a hive of frenetic hen activity.
Okay, I want out now.
I take a couple steps towards the door and I guess that gave the broody hen an idea because she suddenly darted in front of me and ran into the door at full speed. Which swung it wide open out of my reach. Two words popped in my head and they were both curse words.
DH had been laughing his head off up to that point. As I ran to try to shut the door and grab the chicken, my husband ran to grab the dog. The dog is genuinely not sure what to do about this very angry bird and decided to make a run for it, evading DH. The broody hen is still determined to chase him off at all costs follows the dog towards the house, across the deck, and stops just short of the house as the dog ran back inside. The dog was a Labrador, Great Dane mix. Not a small or timid dog. I managed to lure her back to the coop with a treat.
Here's a pic of her sitting on her nest after the dog went home.
I don't have a habit of naming my chickens, but I think she has definitely earned one now. Any suggestions?
We had a dog come stay with us for a couple days. My chickens have never seen a dog, though they can hear them in the neighborhood. My husband brought our guest canine out to the yard to play while I was working in the coop and she made a bee line in our direction. She was well behaved, didn't bark, didn't lunge. But the startled chickens cowered in the far corner of their coop in a little nervous bunch, making worried hen noises. As DH is trying to get the dogs attention with a Frisbee, out of the corner of my eyes I see a blur of black feathers explode from the nest box. She stops in the center of the coop in front of the boxes, fluffs up in indignation and makes a cackling noise that can only be righteous anger. She spread her wings and rushed full speed in the direct of the startle dog, bouncing off the wire fence. She does this again and again and again. The dog is now a little concerned about this turn of events and starts barking and lunging in response. That throws all the chickens into an absolute flapping, leaping panic and suddenly my coop in a hive of frenetic hen activity.
Okay, I want out now.
I take a couple steps towards the door and I guess that gave the broody hen an idea because she suddenly darted in front of me and ran into the door at full speed. Which swung it wide open out of my reach. Two words popped in my head and they were both curse words.
DH had been laughing his head off up to that point. As I ran to try to shut the door and grab the chicken, my husband ran to grab the dog. The dog is genuinely not sure what to do about this very angry bird and decided to make a run for it, evading DH. The broody hen is still determined to chase him off at all costs follows the dog towards the house, across the deck, and stops just short of the house as the dog ran back inside. The dog was a Labrador, Great Dane mix. Not a small or timid dog. I managed to lure her back to the coop with a treat.
Here's a pic of her sitting on her nest after the dog went home.
I don't have a habit of naming my chickens, but I think she has definitely earned one now. Any suggestions?
