Broody or just wants to sleep in the nesting box.

[lissalischicks]

So my 2.5 year old Easter Egger, Peach, has been sitting off and on throughout the day today (not unusual). She officially sat in the box around 2pm and hasn't gotten off since. I am trying to figure out if she is starting to try to go broody.
Some background around Peach: she tends to sit for a looking time (hours and hours) before she lays her eggs. She will go in and out if the nesting box occasionally until she is truly ready to lay the egg. Once she sets in to lay she will officially sit for at least 3 hours.
Because Peach sits for so long I did not think much about it. She didn't scream or screech bloody murder when I lifted her up to see if she had an egg under her (which she didn't.) She hasn't flattened herself down on the nest either

So just went outside. Took her out of the nesting box and placed her on the ramp. After looking around she eventually walked into the house and jumped on the roost herself.

So do you think she might be going broody? Easter Eggers usually don't go broody right?

For fun her is a pix of her when she was in the nesting box from my coopcam.

 

[aart]

Any breed can go broody.
Here's the signs I look for:
Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, does she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck(ticking bomb) sound on her way back to the nest?
If so, then she is probably broody and you'll have to decide how to manage it.

She may just be a 'lounger'....spending more time in the nests than needed to take care of business(laying an egg). Is she laying?
She may be avoiding pecking order disputes.
She may not be feeling well and is 'hiding'.
Or she may be 'thinking' about going broody.
If you want her to go broody leave her be and see what happens,
if you don't want her to go broody keep tossing her out of the nest.

 

[lissalischicks]

She may just be a 'lounger'....spending more time in the nests than needed to take care of business(laying an egg)

Love the lounger word. She lays but hasn't in a while(like a week). I do not think she is being bullied picked on. She has not exhibited any of the broody sign either. This morning she is out and about eating grass. Personally I do not want a broody hen so was trying to figure this out and stop her early. Last year, I missed the signs on one of my girls and she was fully set in. We ended up giving her fertilized eggs and she hatch 5 chicks.

 

[Col1948]

Coincidence, one of mine has started doing this most of yesterday, I tossed her out of the nest about 5 times, she made racket when I did, sqauking.
I had to go out this morning but again she was on the nest, been there all night it looks like.
Anyway looked in the coop not long ago and she was out with the the others, she seems lively enough.