Broody Hen Thread!

[Coop de Grass]

Hello All, I have an Ameraucana/Easter Egger hen who was attacked by a hawk. She has been stitched up and is medicated and isolated ffrom the flock, mainly so we don't eat her eggs. She has laid 2 eggs in 3 days, and I left them in her nest because I was lazy. I have a camera aimed at her and it looks to me like she has become broody! Is this likely? She has plenty of room to move around because the pen is 3 x 5 and 3' tall. Her nest is in a crate.

Any thoughts?

 

[Channel WHEN]

My broody (a speckled sussex named Ms. Piggy) egg's have started
to hatch today!!!!!!!!! 18 eggs 5 out saw some others pipped!

 

[WVduckchick]

My broody (a speckled sussex named Ms. Piggy) egg's have started to hatch today!!!!!!!!! 18 eggs 5 out saw some others pipped!

Precious!

 

[microchick]

Channel WHEN, can I show your hen's picture to my speckled Sussex? I think somebody forgot to tell her that SS's are supposed to be prone to broodiness. Luckily she is more than willing to donate eggs to other broody hen's causes. In fact I have two of her sons from a union with one of my Welsummer roosters. Doc and Dopey are 6 months old, starting to crow and beautiful cockerels.

What breed are the chicks that she is hatching?

 

[Coop de Grass]

Channel WHEN, can I show your hen's picture to my speckled Sussex? I think somebody forgot to tell her that SS's are supposed to be prone to broodiness. Luckily she is more than willing to donate eggs to other broody hen's causes. In fact I have two of her sons from a union with one of my Welsummer roosters. Doc and Dopey are 6 months old, starting to crow and beautiful cockerels.

What breed are the chicks that she is hatching?

That looks like a Bielefelder egg, and the stripes indicate an autosexing breed. Gorgeous chick! Congrats!

 

[Channel WHEN]

That looks like a Bielefelder egg, and the stripes indicate an autosexing breed. Gorgeous chick! Congrats!

Channel WHEN, can I show your hen's picture to my speckled Sussex? I think somebody forgot to tell her that SS's are supposed to be prone to broodiness. Luckily she is more than willing to donate eggs to other broody hen's causes. In fact I have two of her sons from a union with one of my Welsummer roosters. Doc and Dopey are 6 months old, starting to crow and beautiful cockerels.

What breed are the chicks that she is hatching?

Here's mom and dad to 16/18 eggos
1 more from another ee hen and the
brown one from either the welsummer,
barnevelder, or bcm. Since I haven't
witnessed someone lay it I'm just not
sure since they're all hatchery stock.


They are ridiculously cute and pretty photogenic too

 

[Coop de Grass]

Not sure about the brown egg layer... the chick looks autosexing to me based on markings. Nice camera work! Perhaps I need to get out my real camera and stop using my phone! What ever they are, they are cute!

 

[microchick]

Hello All, I have an Ameraucana/Easter Egger hen who was attacked by a hawk. She has been stitched up and is medicated and isolated ffrom the flock, mainly so we don't eat her eggs. She has laid 2 eggs in 3 days, and I left them in her nest because I was lazy. I have a camera aimed at her and it looks to me like she has become broody! Is this likely? She has plenty of room to move around because the pen is 3 x 5 and 3' tall. Her nest is in a crate.

Any thoughts?

It's possible. Have you seen her get off the nest any with your chicken cam? If she is staying on the nest 24/7 with the exception of getting off to eat, drink and poop I'd say she is broody.

How is she doing post hawk attack?

 

[PluckyJen]

Hi everybody. My girl Harriet ( cochin ) is showing signs of being broody. She has been laying 1 egg every day without fail. Even today. They ( her and her sister Gertrude ) lay early mornings and i remove eggs by late afternoon. Should i try remove them earlier to try not encourage her to sit longer? Today has been the first real day shes wanted to nest. Iv taken her out and let her free range with Gertude and it lasts about 20 mins and shes back on nest. She isnt showing any signs of being sick so iv ruled that out.

Their coop is inside their run. A large cage with nesting boxes inside. Should i let her lay her egg tomorrow then put her in run and close the door to the coop?

 

[microchick]

Hi everybody. My girl Harriet ( cochin ) is showing signs of being broody. She has been laying 1 egg every day without fail. Even today. They ( her and her sister Gertrude ) lay early mornings and i remove eggs by late afternoon. Should i try remove them earlier to try not encourage her to sit longer? Today has been the first real day shes wanted to nest. Iv taken her out and let her free range with Gertude and it lasts about 20 mins and shes back on nest. She isnt showing any signs of being sick so iv ruled that out.

Their coop is inside their run. A large cage with nesting boxes inside. Should i let her lay her egg tomorrow then put her in run and close the door to the coop?

If you don't want her to incubate eggs at this time, the best thing you can do is break her. For that you need to put her in a suspended wire cage (setting a cage atop a few concrete blocks will do) no bedding, just food and water and a perch for her to roost on. Make sure air is circulating under her and naturally that she is protected from the elements. it usually takes 3 days to break them but be advised, I've learned that they don't stay broke forever. The last hen I broke stayed broke for about 2 months and then went broody again. Those "I wanna be a mommy!" hormones are potent in a hen.

I don't know how your weather is in South Africa at the moment. We are entering winter here so not the best time to broody. But if you have fertile eggs and the ability to handle a broody hen, a few eggs for her to drool over and hatch also solves the problem.

Good luck. Keep us informed.