Broody Hen with no Eggs!!!

[Chickalita]

I have a chocolate Cochin who has been consistently laying throughout December. The past few days she’s gone broody.
It excites me and we’ve had hens go broody but when I checked to see how many she had I found none. She sat their broody on nothing for 3 days. Thankfully I saved 13 of the eggs she’s been laying but was worried if she broods in the winter weather or not it would be bad for her health.
My solution: I want her to brood but safely. So I moved her into a big brooder with a heat lamp that we have for chicks and divided it in half. We only have 3 chicks around 8 weeks on the other side and I gave her a nest and a few eggs to start her off slow.
I came back a few hours later though and found her outside of the nest. Uninterested with the eggs but still fluffing her feather and laying like she’s broody. Pecking etc.
can someone please tell me how I can safely solve this and have her hatch these eggs? Should I not have other chicks so close to her?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

She doesn't need a heat lamp. She probably abandoned the nest from being too hot. Let her do her thing. Give her eggs, mark them so you know they're hers and take away any that get added.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Don't "start her off slow." You want all the eggs to hatch at the same time or she will abandon the ones remaining unhatched once she has live chicks. The chicks beside her shouldn't bother her at all. Provide water, food and grit for her but far enough away so she has to get off the eggs to get to them. That way she won't poop on the eggs. Good luck!

 

[Chickalita]

Don't "start her off slow." You want all the eggs to hatch at the same time or she will abandon the ones remaining unhatched once she has live chicks. The chicks beside her shouldn't bother her at all. Provide water, food and grit for her but far enough away so she has to get off the eggs to get to them. That way she won't poop on the eggs. Good luck!

Should I let her brood in the coop then? Ours gets pretty cold so we add a tarp and a heated water pad. I think her space felt cramped and she didn’t like being moved. She did not accept any eggs. She’s just got right off them. The heat lamp from the brooder wasn’t hitting her directly. I’d say it’s about 60 degrees in there comfortably since I had a nesting box and a divider she was on the colder side. I’m thinking maybe take the chicks out and give them a cage? They’re 8 weeks and we have another heat lamp they can keep warm under.

 

[Chickalita]

Just a feed for how this ended. My chocolate Cochin seemed to lose her eggs multiple times. She would lay on them for a day and then lay in the nesting box next to them after she was done taking her break. I found myself moving her to her eggs numerous times. So I said enough is enough once I found her eggs in 30 degree weather cold to the touch with her in the wrong nest again. I took them to the incubator and thankfully these babies hatch 12 of 14 eggs. In the end I trade 4 for chocolate Ameraucanas and gave the rest to my hen at night. By the next morning I checked on them and there she was being the best mom ever.

 

[Paz]

Yay! Happy ending

 

[ChookaPete]

By the next morning I checked on them and there she was being the best mom ever.

Awww!