Broody hen?

[Alydup]

I recently took in a tiny frizzle that was being bullied in her own flock. I am new to chickens and just had some young unthreatening chickens similar in size to her at the moment. I separated her in a kennel with a nesting box but she never did use the nesting box just dug a little nest in the ground and laid her eggs there. Once I allowed her out with my chickens they seemed to get along fine but I left the open kennel because I read it was good to keep a place for a new chicken to hide in case they need it. She began to spend most of her time sitting in the kennel and continued to lay her eggs there. I then removed the kennel because they were getting along fine and now she hasn’t laid an egg for over a week. Is this because she preferred the kennel to the nesting box or because she is broody? Or maybe something all together different? She seems to be otherwise healthy.

 

[staceyj]

Some broody behaviors include:
Growling
Pecking YOU
Clucking incessantly
Puffing up and fanning out tail feathers -basically impersonating a turkey.
Gigantic poops
Eating/drinking very little
Pancake impersonations no matter where you put her.

 

[Alydup]

Hmm...this could be what’s going on. She’s pretty noisey and much less friendly than my other chickens... but I raised them from chicks. She has no tail feathers because they were all plucked out by her previous flock. I have never had an adult chicken so I don’t really know the norm behaviour wise.

 

[Alydup]

Oh also she never roosts at night. She just sits in a new little area in a corner she has taken to

 

[50-45-1]

Depending on the set up you have now i wonder if your small frizzle is not able to fly up on your roosts or up into your nest boxs. depending on the height you have them.
When i had a similar situation with my silkies i had to add a lower rung to my roost ladder.
What breed are the rest of your flock.
If you hold her and extend one of her wings and compare to your other chickens maybe there is a difference.
Do you have fake eggs or golf balls in your nest boxes?
I find it helps a hen to know where to lay. Do not leave real eggs in the boxes.

 

[Alydup]

There are lower roosts and the nesting box I even tried on the ground as that’s where she seems to stay. She can’t fly because most of her feathers were plucked out but she can jump fairly high. She did roost some initially but then seemed to take to her nest area most of the time. She still sits in basically the same spot she was laying her eggs in the kennel. That’s what made me think she was broody. She does come out of that spot some into the run and will come out briefly when they free range but then she heads back to her spot.

 

[aart]

I then removed the kennel because they were getting along fine and now she hasn’t laid an egg for over a week.

when they free range

She may have found a 'safe' place to lay out in range area as she's a new bird in the flock and took the opportunity to avoid any nest in coop/run.