Broody hen hasn't pooped in almost a week

[kathrync]

My broody Wyandotte is ridiculous... she never leaves the nest to eat or drink or poop! She's been sitting on eggs for 6 days now. Over the last few days I've been putting a little dish of scrambled egg and water in front of her in the nest so she won't dehydrate or starve. She won't eat chicken feed. I've tried pulling her off her nest and putting her in the run to see if she will poop, but she just stands there. Should I be worried? Would it be a good idea to take her off the eggs for longer? or will that be too risky? I know she's not pooping because she is living in a separate brooder box. Still in the coop where she can see the other chickens, though, so she's not alone.

It may also be helpful to know that she went broody a few days before I put her on the eggs, during which time she was in a dog crate to try and break her broodiness, which didn't work. I think she pooped during that time.

 

[Hopeful homesteader]

I think this is pretty normal, the first week mine wouldn't leave the nests and didn't eat or drink which means no poop either. On reading further about incubation, the first week is the most critical as far as keeping the eggs at a constant temperature for proper development and then weeks 2 and 3 they are ok with minor temperature fluctuations when the hen leaves to eat etc. I still offered water in the nests but I figured this was why they weren't coming off at first, then they started coming out every day in the second week and then stayed in the nest for a week just before and after the eggs hatched. Mine sat for a week before I gave them eggs but I didn't try to break their broodiness. I just left them in the nest and would bring food for as long as I was in there and then removed food when I left so they'd have to come off to eat outside the nest but I left water in at all times because it was too hot and they always drank but didn't always eat.

 

[Chicalina]

I'd take her off for 10 to 15 mins and close the nest off. The eggs will be fine. Hens take a couple of minutes sometimes when you take them off the nest to come out of the Broody Trance. They may stand or sit still until suddenly they snap out of it and run to the food and water and they poop. Once she has finished, just allow her back to the nest. You may need to do this every day.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

Remove her for a long period of time. She's not hatching fertile eggs is she? Remove her for 30 minutes and block off the nest.

 

[Shadrach]

It's not normal and not healthy either. Occasionally one may get a hen sit tight on her nest for two or three days while they turn the eggs as the embryo develops enough to prevent it sticking to the inside of the shell, but after this they should get off the nest to eat, drink, poop and dustbath.
I would take her off the nest once every day. You need to make sure she wakes out the broody trance fully. Make her stand and walk for however long it takes to get her out of her broody trance. If necessary block the nest off for half an hour or so.
It's making sure she comes out of the broody trance that catches some people out. Just getting them off the nest is sometimes not enough. You hhave to wake them up as well.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

It's not normal and not healthy either. Occasionally one may get a hen sit tight on her nest for two or three days while they turn the eggs as the embryo develops enough to prevent it sticking to the inside of the shell, but after this they should get off the nest to eat, drink, poop and dustbath.
I would take her off the nest once every day. You need to make sure she wakes out the broody trance fully. Make her stand and walk for however long it takes to get her out of her broody trance. If necessary block the nest off for half an hour or so.
It's making sure she comes out of the broody trance that catches some people out. Just getting them off the nest is sometimes not enough. You hhave to wake them up as well.

I have a broody right now too. She gets up on her own at times but I make a point of removing her and locking her out until I see her take a dump (it's really a fitting description...broody poops are messy and terrible) and eat/drink.
Not doing basic bodily functions isn't normal and is dangerous.

 

[Shadrach]

I have a broody right now too. She gets up on her own at times but I make a point of removing her and locking her out until I see her take a dump (it's really a fitting description...broody poops are messy and terrible) and eat/drink.
Not doing basic bodily functions isn't normal and is dangerous.

Yup, broody poop is pretty awful.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

Yup, broody poop is pretty awful.

Mine has stopped making solid poos. Not sure why. It's...sloppy. I despise them. I can smell them from across the yard.

 

[TheFatBlueCat]

I dump my hens off the nest each morning at flock breakfast time, and I leave them out there till they decide to go back. It can take them a good 2 minutes or more to break their trance and get up to eat, drink, poop and dust bathe. They will get up on their own but I like to make sure they get their share of the food. They are with the flock until a few days before eggs hatch when I lock them into their chick raising runs (I have them already in here, I just close them in).

 

[Alicia Manolas]

Another view.

It's natural for them to go into the zone, this is caused by a body metabolism slow down significantly just for cluckyhood. Many will poop twice to 3x a week like clock work, (get up, POOP, drink, eat, eat, drink, stretch, and sit back down in approximately 20 mins usually, depending on weather) and it depends on the breed, but yes, you can force them to do other things if you want to force them.

And if it's not important eggs under her, arguably it might be better for her? Force her to cease entirely or start to tinker with her cycle.

I say arguably, because it's an old argument; you are causing her mental distress, she is doing what is natural for her, and force wrenching her out of the zone is causing mental damage, to try and make her bodys metabolism speed up, when she IS broody, her metabolism IS slow.

So everytime you do it, you are effectively trying to kick start a metabolism not ready nor needing, a kick.

We VERY occasionally hear of clueless cluckies or new cluckies who go 'too deep' slow too far, and cease to eat ENTIRELY rather than the couple times a week. We can assist by putting high protein feed right under their noses, egg mash, for ones who have lost weight, or you are concerned about that, all natural peanut butter, for natural fats and oils. And a water pot in reach.

But you still wont convince the good cluckies to break their own biology and get up daily. If you stuff them, they will just poop in the nest and you will have to clean it out AND their feathers... they will not break 1000's of years clucky schedule for tasty noms, lol. They will either ignore it until their appointed feed day, or give in and eat, and make a mess and feel crappy, in both meanings of the word, about it.

We need to look out for their mental health, not just our expectations of their physical norm.

Talk to 5 or 6 other breeders of the same breed who watch their birds closely, (dont assume like many) and find out their clucky schedule before hitting panick stations and forcing anything would be my suggestion. I've kept a range of show breeds for 35 years, very close, and all their clucky schedules were slightly different, and I've only had one who stood daily (and she was a new mother so is no way to measure the breed).

Slowed metabolism, different breeds, mental health care should count, and Sometimes it is just a matter of knowing why, and the reasons behind, to help you make a better informed choice. Hoping this helps a bit.