Broody hen switches sitting on different eggs

[anniemarie01]

I have one broody hen that will sit on eggs, protecting them (running and screaming when we go into the coop to collect other eggs and give them food) and barely leaving the nesting box. But all of a sudden after a few days she'll switch to a different nesting box, sitting on new fresh eggs and abandoning the old eggs. I don’t know why she keeps switching to a new box (which sometimes only has one egg or even none) and abandoning the old eggs. We don’t need baby chicks (although it would be cool to see her raise some), but I’m not sure why she keeps exhibiting broody behavior and switching. She’s done this with two sets of eggs already (the first about 7 days, the most recent for 5 days) and I don’t want her to keep switching eggs because then she’ll stay broody but have no chicks, and I’m concerned that her doing this too long can be harmful. Any help would be appreciated as to how to get her to stay on the same eggs and stop switching!

 

[Firekin1]

They usually do that if there's another bird in the box when they come back in from eating or drinking.

 

[50-45-1]

if you intend for your broody to hatch eggs, you should build her a broody hutch where she can be undisturbed by the other hens.
Also some nest box situations are not sutible for the chicks to get in and out of when that time arrives.
With a hutch, there is no stagered batch, broken eggs due to other hens intiferance, or posibility of chilled eggs due to her switching nests.
Set up a hutch, start savings eggs for her, mover her to the new situation with eggs after darkness.
Otherwise i sugest you brake her broodiness as this is not the best recipie for hatching success and she will continue her false starts and extend her broodyiness and her condition will detioriate.

 

[aart]

When I have a broody I wait until she's been in the nest most the day and all night for 2-3 days...along with those other signs I posted.

Then I put her in the broody enclosure with fake eggs in the floor nest, she won't like being moved, but if she is truly good and broody she will settle onto the new nest within a half a day.
Then I give her fresh fertile eggs and mark the calendar.

I like them separated by wire from the flock, it's just easier all around.
No having to mark eggs and remove any additions daily, no taking up a laying nest, no going back to the wrong nest after the daily constitutional.


I remove barrier about one week after hatch. The chicks are usually safe it's the broody who has to 'fight' her way back into the pecking order...which can be quick or take a few days.

Lots of space helps for re-integration.

 

[aart]

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

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 used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take 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.

 

[cmom]

Here is my broody hutch.

These were bad girls and wanted to beat up on the others.

 

[Sue Gremlin]

I remove barrier about one week after hatch. The chicks are usually safe it's the broody who has to 'fight' her way back into the pecking order...which can be quick or take a few days.

Lots of space helps for re-integration.

Thanks for answering a question I have before I even got to post it. I have a broody on some fertile eggs and am trying to work out how to manage her and her chicks when they hatch.

 

[anniemarie01]

if you intend for your broody to hatch eggs, you should build her a broody hutch where she can be undisturbed by the other hens.
Also some nest box situations are not sutible for the chicks to get in and out of when that time arrives.
With a hutch, there is no stagered batch, broken eggs due to other hens intiferance, or posibility of chilled eggs due to her switching nests.
Set up a hutch, start savings eggs for her, mover her to the new situation with eggs after darkness.
Otherwise i sugest you brake her broodiness as this is not the best recipie for hatching success and she will continue her false starts and extend her broodyiness and her condition will detioriate.

Sorry to reply so late but thank you for answering! i think we’ll try that! I actually just realized there are mites in the nesting boxes too so do you think that’s why she could be moving?

 

[anniemarie01]

They usually do that if there's another bird in the box when they come back in from eating or drinking.

That’s what I thought but I kept watching them and she goes back to the nesting boxes before the rest of the hens do.. I think she might be confused about which box she was in haha

 

[anniemarie01]

if you intend for your broody to hatch eggs, you should build her a broody hutch where she can be undisturbed by the other hens.
Also some nest box situations are not sutible for the chicks to get in and out of when that time arrives.
With a hutch, there is no stagered batch, broken eggs due to other hens intiferance, or posibility of chilled eggs due to her switching nests.
Set up a hutch, start savings eggs for her, mover her to the new situation with eggs after darkness.
Otherwise i sugest you brake her broodiness as this is not the best recipie for hatching success and she will continue her false starts and extend her broodyiness and her condition will detioriate.

Have you had a problem with reintegration when the chicks hatch and she’s moved back into the coop? We just have one hen who likes to pick on the new girls and I don’t want her to have a problem. Also sorry to reply so late, things have been crazy here