Broody or other problem?

[HollyKMS]

I'm new at this so I need some advice.

Our Australorp pullet, who's only been laying for about a month, won't get off the nest. She's been on there going on 3 days. She laid an egg again this morning next to Welsummer's egg (hers was still warm when I removed the eggs) so she's not got an egg obstruction, I don't think. They both lay 5 or 6 eggs a week.

We have no rooster- will unbred chickens become broody like this? She doesn't seem sick otherwise and when we take her out and hand-feed her worms, she eats them ravenously. She acts normal if I take her out and put her with the chickens, will eat the crushed corn treat, etc, but within a few minutes wanders off from the other ladies and goes straight back to her favorite nest box.

I'm worried she's going to cull herself.

Suggestions?

 

[Dar]

is she still laying?

when you go to taker off does she make a weird sound and seem like she is going to peck you?

A hen will still go broody with no rooster present.

 

[LynneP]

My Zipfi is like that and she has self-plucked a bare patch of skin. No rooster needed.
She would be a treasure if I were breeding chickens, and I'm lucky she keeps weight on.
That's your big concern really, making sure your hen eats enough especially in cold weather.

Some thoughts here, I think you may see your hen in this situation-

https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=7693-sick-hen

 

[HollyKMS]

Wow Lynne- Zipfi's beautiful--that wattle's so bright and big!

Dar, not only is she still laying, I just went out to move her from the nest box and lo-and-behold, she's laid a SECOND egg today, which she's NEVER done before. No idea what that's about...

Whenever I try to move her, she squawks and pecks at me (she's normally a sweet hand-fed little pet). She's definitely still got some pluck to her! She's puffed out to nearly twice her size, nestled as far down in the straw as chickenly possible, with her shiny iridescent black tail-feathers in the air--and not taking any of my nonsense! lol

She's never pecked me before! S'OK tho- It didn't hurt anything but my feelings

I read on a site that behavior like that usually requires removal from the nest box temporarily. I moved her into a medium dog crate in the garage with some food/water. There's no straw for her to nestle into, just paper in the bottom.

I hope this works. As I said, I'm concerned about her (lack of) eating.

I'll ck to see if she's eaten anything later when I get back from our NYE party....

Oh, and HAPPY NEW YEAR, everyone!

Hope all of you have a great, safe night, and a wonderful New Years!!!

Pls let me know if you have any other advice...

THANKS!
Holly

 

[Dar]

it sounds like she may be broody. they get little tudes when they are broody

as for laying 2 eggs today... its ok.. she prob laid one early this morning and another one this evening, but you may not get one from her for tomorrow or even saturday. no cause for concern.

you can try and block her from the nest sometimes that works, its never worked for me. I will just take them out of the nest a few times, make sure when i am bringing treats i will have a seperat bowl for her with some layer crumbles in it... and it passes. but thats just what my girls do each hen is different...its only my silkies that go broody

 

[HollyKMS]

Sweet little Australorp is officially THE DEVIL, all one-and-a-half pounds of her.

Today, when I removed her from the nest, she didn't just peck me, she went into full-on attack mode, pecking repeatedly like a woodpecker at my fingers and arms while making loud low guttural threatening-sounding clucking sounds. (Where is the 'rabid chicken' smilie icon when you need it???) I put her out to free range with the others. As soon as her claws hit the ground, she immediately stood up as tall as she could, fluffed out her neck, flapped wildly while cawing (beak WIDE OPEN), and proceeded to start making long cluck calls louder than a freakin' rooster, very aggressively, before dive-bombing every hen within range of her.

I thought she was going to take Welsummer's head off.

I had no idea hens could even BE THAT LOUD or that offensively aggressive. I was just standing there pie-eyed. She was like Cujo the chicken. W. T. H.

She's gotten so mean about other hens approaching our single nest box ledge that I had to put up a divider today so Welsummer would have a place to lay without being attacked. (The ledge was made for 2 boxes originally but with so few laying hens right now, I didn't see the need in putting up the divider, until today.)

I assume this is just part of the hormonal brooding thing and should pass in time?? *fingers crossed* It's like the world's craziest poultry PMS!!!

Hell hath no fury like a bantam brooding.

 

[Preservation Acres]

Oh she's broody alright. She's wanting to be a mamma!

 

[HollyKMS]

That'll be pretty hard with no roos around! She's in for a long wait!

Maybe she needs a hormone shot. Or a sedative.

(J/K!)

In related news, 1 of the 3 leghorns I'm starting to suspect may be a roo. The head and tail are being held suspiciously higher than the other two. Jury's out but if she's a he, he'll have to be re-homed. We're in suburbia. The laws allow roosters where we live but manners really don't. 'Houses are too close & it'd be rude to the neighbors.

Anyway, what would happen if a standard leghorn sired chicks by bantam Welsummers/Australorps and standard Ameraucanas? What would come out of all that?