Broody or not ???

[RoosterML]

I have no experience with this at all. So I went to close the gals and guys in for the night. Doing my head count I noticed 1 missing. Sure enough my Partridge Orpington is in a nesting box. First for this with her. She is roughly 8 months Jan 1. I think I can count on one hand the amount of eggs she has given me as she just started laying. So I reach in to pick her up to place her on the roost. She pecked at me before I got ahold of her a few times. Placed her on the roost and about 5 seconds later she jumped down grabbed a quick bite to eat and made her way back to the nest box. Moved her 4 times total. Each time going back to nest box. Now the obvious question comes. Broody or does she just need to lay an egg? Please give me some guidance on what to look for as far as when a broody goes broody. Just my luck if she is as it is only the end of December. I'll be asking plenty of questions along the way if she is in fact broody. If she is going to hatch some eggs I think I will let nature take its course and let her do her thing in the coop with all the others. I knew I shouldn't have put in those fake eggs.I took the fake eggs out of the boxes she was in hoping it may help. Thank you for your help.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Wait a few more days to tell if she's broody or not. I would not let a hen hatch this time of year. She will more than like go broody repeatedly throughout the year, so you will have plenty of time to hatch and will need to become familiar with breaking her of it. Most fancy colors of Orpingtons go broody often.

 

[Brahmachicken240]

I have no experience with this at all. So I went to close the gals and guys in for the night. Doing my head count I noticed 1 missing. Sure enough my Partridge Orpington is in a nesting box. First for this with her. She is roughly 8 months Jan 1. I think I can count on one hand the amount of eggs she has given me as she just started laying. So I reach in to pick her up to place her on the roost. She pecked at me before I got ahold of her a few times. Placed her on the roost and about 5 seconds later she jumped down grabbed a quick bite to eat and made her way back to the nest box. Moved her 4 times total. Each time going back to nest box. Now the obvious question comes. Broody or does she just need to lay an egg? Please give me some guidance on what to look for as far as when a broody goes broody. Just my luck if she is as it is only the end of December. I'll be asking plenty of questions along the way if she is in fact broody. If she is going to hatch some eggs I think I will let nature take its course and let her do her thing in the coop with all the others. I knew I shouldn't have put in those fake eggs.I took the fake eggs out of the boxes she was in hoping it may help. Thank you for your help.

Sounds like she is, was she growling/screaming at you whilst you tried to move her ?
If you would like her to hatch eggs, do you have a rooster with her to fertilize the eggs ?

 

[Brahmachicken240]

Wait a few more days to tell if she's broody or not. I would not let a hen hatch this time of year. She will more than like go broody repeatedly throughout the year, so you will have plenty of time to hatch and will need to become familiar with breaking her of it. Most fancy colors of Orpingtons go broody often.

Agreed

 

[tcfoster]

Sounds like broodiness to me! Is she puffing up and making little clucking noises? Does she have a time of day that she usually lays? You can break her broodiness or let her ride it out. For my silkies, I let them just be broody and I pull them off the nest a few times a day to eat and drink. They will usually stay broody for a week or two, but they are good about getting the nutrients and water they need so I don't worry about them too much. For my big girls, I do break them as some of them refuse to eat or drink when they are broody and I want to get it over with as quickly as possible. They go into the "broody box" which is a wire cage that we elevate with 4 cement blocks on each corner and put in the coop. That way she is still around her flock mates but isn't able to get into the nesting boxes. I put a perch in (so she doesn't hurt her feet standing on the wire), food, and water. I also usually make a melon mash with water and Nutridrench to give her some extra vitamins. 3 days in the broody box day and night will usually snap them out of it. You will be able to tell when they are done as they will start walking around the box and making normal chicken noises. If they are sitting in the same place all day, clucking, making dinosaur noises, and puffing up then it's a sure sign they aren't done being broody. If you are going to break broodiness, get them in their box as soon as you notice the first sign!

 

[tcfoster]

Sounds like broodiness to me! Is she puffing up and making little clucking noises? Does she have a time of day that she usually lays? You can break her broodiness or let her ride it out. For my silkies, I let them just be broody and I pull them off the nest a few times a day to eat and drink. They will usually stay broody for a week or two, but they are good about getting the nutrients and water they need so I don't worry about them too much. For my big girls, I do break them as some of them refuse to eat or drink when they are broody and I want to get it over with as quickly as possible. They go into the "broody box" which is a wire cage that we elevate with 4 cement blocks on each corner and put in the coop. That way she is still around her flock mates but isn't able to get into the nesting boxes. I put a perch in (so she doesn't hurt her feet standing on the wire), food, and water. I also usually make a melon mash with water and Nutridrench to give her some extra vitamins. 3 days in the broody box day and night will usually snap them out of it. You will be able to tell when they are done as they will start walking around the box and making normal chicken noises. If they are sitting in the same place all day, clucking, making dinosaur noises, and puffing up then it's a sure sign they aren't done being broody. If you are going to break broodiness, get them in their box as soon as you notice the first sign!

Of course, if you do want to hatch eggs then you wouldn't want to break them, but it's not a great time of year to hatch so if it were me I would wait.

 

[RoosterML]

Sounds like she is, was she growling/screaming at you whilst you tried to move her ?
If you would like her to hatch eggs, do you have a rooster with her to fertilize the eggs ?

No growling or anything just pecked me. Yes I have two Orpington roosters with her.

 

[Brahmachicken240]

No growling or anything just pecked me. Yes I have two Orpington roosters with her.

Usually when they’re broody they’ll growl, scream, puff up at you and peck at you when you try to touch their eggs or get them off their nest. Sounds like she may of just been laying an egg. Quite late to be laying though. You’ll know tomorrow.

 

[RoosterML]

Usually when they’re broody they’ll growl, scream, puff up at you and peck at you when you try to touch their eggs or get them off their nest. Sounds like she may of just been laying an egg. Quite late to be laying though. You’ll know tomorrow.

I agree could be to lay an egg. I don't think she has the whole laying thing done yet only started laying within the past week or 2.
Good to know about the whole puffing and noise making thing. I guess I'll post back tomorrow. So if she is out and about tomorrow I take it it is not broodiness?

 

[aart]

I agree could be to lay an egg. I don't think she has to whole laying thing done yet only started laying within the past week or 2.
Good to know about the whole puffing and noise making thing. I guess I'll post back tomorrow. So if she is out and about tomorrow I take it it is not broodiness?

Have had some pullets 'lay late'..or at least were in the nest at lock down.
I moved them to the roost, I do this well after full dark so they can't see to go back to nest.

Just watch her in the next couple days.

Here's some clues.
Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, doesn't she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck 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.