Broody Mama Drama

[aggieterpkatie]

Hey all. I have a broody hen (

) but we're having difficulties getting her to actually sit on one nest for any length of time. We have a 4-hole nest box, and every day for several weeks I'd find her sitting on eggs. Finally I gave her 5 eggs and let her set. A few days pass, and then I find her in a DIFFERENT nest!!!

So, I told her we'd try again when she's a little older (she's not even a year old yet). A few weeks go by and I try again. Same problem! I'm not sure if she gets down to eat and another hen gets in the nest to lay, or if Broodygirl gets confused when she goes to get back in the nest.

So, I decided to bring the dog crate into the coop and give her a spot away from the nest boxes so she won't be confused anymore. I locked her in over night, and then next morning opened the door so she could get food and water. That afternoon she'd left the nest and was back in the next box! So, I closed her back in the crate and gave her food and water in there. A few days go by and I tried opening the door again, because the crate isn't all that big and I want her to be able to stretch her legs. She got in the nest box again!!

So, I locked her back up.

Any suggestions? I'd love for her to hatch some eggs. Should I put her in the barn away from the other chickens so she only has 1 nest to pick from? I'm want her to either sh*t or get off the pot, know what I mean? It's a pain to have her in the next box every single day, but then not sit on one nest for longer than 5 days without getting confused!!

 

[RL]

I have a 10 month old banty Cochin that did that for about 2 months. She would sit on a nest for a night or two then she would stay off it for a night or two and be on different nest. She would walk around the yard acting like she was calling her chicks. On the 15th of this month she started sitting on 10 eggs and staying in one nest full time. I am hoping they will hatch on or just after Easter. It might just take a little time for yours to decide if she really wants to brood now or not.

If she is in with all the others they will lay in her nest and they will disturb her and they could end up breaking the eggs. The best thing to do is move her to her own space with a nest box on the ground - you can use a cardboard box for this and you don't want the older one killing the chicks. Also have enough room for her and the chicks as they will grow quickly and you don’t want them out growing the space too fast. Good luck with her.