Broody hen in winter

[Jameyk92]

Live in south Louisiana, We have a hen and this Is her second time going broody, She hatched 3/5 last time. We have moved her into a quite darker area alone from the others.
She is very dedicated, seems she doesn’t want to move. When we check her food and water it seems untouched?
We have temps right now 45-65, but will be 20• lower next week! Will she and the eggs be ok? They are in a cage with a plywood bottom and manly wood shaving but she has built up a nice nest.
Please any info will help, we love our flock and want them all healthy.
Thanks

 

[Chicken_Mamaa]

You might want to put more bedding for her, and maybe look into a small 20-watt heat lamp. That would make sure she was warm. The eggs will be fine, they will always be okay so long as the mama is warm.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

I’m in north Florida, probably the same climate zone as you. I have hens brood all winter, outside on hidden nests. They are fine. The only issue is making sure they don’t get far from the bitties on cold mornings. When I throw out the morning feed sometimes a mother hen will run 75 yards away from their bitties to pick up feed and leave the chicks behind to freeze. It only takes a few minutes for chicks to fall over kicking from cold exposure. I helps locking new mothers into a small coop or pen with their chicks for a couple of weeks until the chicks are strong enough to quickly run with mother.

 

[Ridgerunner]

This thread shows what happened when someone in Michigan had a broody hatch in much colder temperatures you will see in South Louisiana. I'll include it for reference, you might find it interesting reading.

Broody in Michigan Winter? | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens

When we check her food and water it seems untouched?

Before a hen even starts laying eggs she builds up a reservoir of excess fat. I've butchered enough older boys and girls to see how great the difference in fat is. That excess fat is what a broody mostly lives on when she is broody. That way she can take care of the eggs instead of having to look for food all day.

I've seen a broody hen leave her nest two times a day for over an hour each time, I had one that only came off for fifteen minutes once a day. Many I never see come off of the nest but I know they are because there is no poop in the nest.

I don't know how you have her set up. If that is the only food or water she can get to some of it should be disappearing, but not necessarily every day. When it is cold they tend to not spend a lot of time off of the nest.

We have temps right now 45-65, but will be 20• lower next week! Will she and the eggs be ok?

Yes. She will keep the eggs warm and her feathers and down will keep her warm. I would not add any heat at all. She doesn't need it and it might mess up her instincts on how to take care of the eggs.