Broody vs. Bound

[RedLionChooks]

Hey all! We have just passed our first year marker raising chickens, so pretty inexperienced. We have 10 hens and 1 rooster. They are all 1 year, 3 months old.

I observed a hen in the nest box last evening around 6pm. The hens are out of the nest boxes by noon every day, so I found this unusual. We had a raucous storm come through last night, and my husband locked up, so I do not know if she spent the night in the nest box or not. I do know that she was not there this morning, and there was no poop in there, but she was in another box for several hours this morning (no egg).

I picked her up out of there, and placed her with the flock. We do not want a broody hen (chicks). I let them out for a quick forage, and she wandered around for a bit, then came back to the next boxes. I made them inaccessible to her, so that she would not have a chance to sit again. I observed for a little while, and she attempted to access the hen house several times.

Her behavior seems a little off -- more chirpy than normal, and she seems to be puffing up and shaking herself more than normal. Walking about normally.

I am wondering if the characteristics of an egg-bound hen ever resemble the tendencies of a broody hen in the beginning. For example, do egg-bound hens frequent the nest box in an attempt to lay the bound egg? Stay there for a while, and leave the box empty? And will a broody hen in the early stages visit a handful of boxes and sit for a good long while before deciding on one for good?

Finally, if the hen is broody (hopefully not!), I would be appreciative of successful anecdotes. We don't have a set up for more chickens! Thanks for any guidance!

 

[humblehillsfarm]

Sounds broody! I've never had a chicken "snap out of it." Once I caved and let her hatch, but the same hen along with another hen went broody when the first chicks were six weeks old so I put them in a small A-frame brooder coop that I have without nesting boxes for four days. They hated it but it stopped them from being broody. Others have put them in dog kennels or whatnot, but my coop worked fine. They had full time access to grass, food, water, and shade and were within sight of the other chickens.

 

[RedLionChooks]

Sounds broody! I've never had a chicken "snap out of it." Once I caved and let her hatch, but the same hen along with another hen went broody when the first chicks were six weeks old so I put them in a small A-frame brooder coop that I have without nesting boxes for four days. They hated it but it stopped them from being broody. Others have put them in dog kennels or whatnot, but my coop worked fine. They had full time access to grass, food, water, and shade and were within sight of the other chickens.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I am planning to block her from the nest boxes for now, once all have laid. I confess I am not prepared for what the next step is if that does not work. I do have a dog crate, and will be prepared to use it if necessary. I am hopeful that by removing her each day, and then closing access will be enough to stop the cycle before it gains a foothold, if that is possible. Just when we were getting comfortable.....

 

[humblehillsfarm]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I am planning to block her from the nest boxes for now, once all have laid. I confess I am not prepared for what the next step is if that does not work. I do have a dog crate, and will be prepared to use it if necessary. I am hopeful that by removing her each day, and then closing access will be enough to stop the cycle before it gains a foothold, if that is possible. Just when we were getting comfortable.....

I don’t recommend that. Chickens can lay up until the evening and I once blocked my birds and have permanently had a chicken laying in the woods and I’ve never found her nest. Not much of a problem if you have a run but could still be distressing for the hen wanting to lay. I have 11 birds though so slightly harder to keep track of things

 

[RedLionChooks]

I don’t recommend that. Chickens can lay up until the evening and I once blocked my birds and have permanently had a chicken laying in the woods and I’ve never found her nest. Not much of a problem if you have a run but could still be distressing for the hen wanting to lay. I have 11 birds though so slightly harder to keep track of things

Thanks for your advise. I would only do this if I knew all eggs have been laid. Our hens are routinely done by 11am. I did worry that if she was NOT broody and was trying to lay an egg, and I closed her off, that she would lay elsewhere. I generally wait to let them out until after they have laid. I will continue to observe, and in the meantime, hustle to set up either the dog crate or, based on another thread, a wire trap that won't take up as much space. Off to it!

 

[RedLionChooks]

Definitely broody.

It is remarkable how powerful that drive is for her to get back to the nest. I had closed the henhouse door during the day, so she could not access the nest boxes. When I returned to let them out to forage for the evening, I found her on a roost outside the closed pop door, just waiting. Given this is my first experience, I thought there was something wrong with her, and that she did not want to be with the rest of the flock, being perched like that - so out of the ordinary. But she was waiting to get back into the henhouse. I opened the henhouse door, went about my chores, only for her to find her making her way back to a nest box. After removing her from the nest several times, placing her outside to forage, she continued to return to the nest box.

So we set her up in a dog crate inside the coop, outfitted with a roost, water and food. Put her in the crate at roost time, and will start counting day one tomorrow. Plan to keep her on the wire floor for 4 days (recommended in another post) in hopes of breaking the cycle. If my heart can take it. I was not prepared for how torn I feel now that we are in this situation. It feels like a crime against nature. Hopefully four days does the trick.

 

[humblehillsfarm]

Definitely broody.

It is remarkable how powerful that drive is for her to get back to the nest. I had closed the henhouse door during the day, so she could not access the nest boxes. When I returned to let them out to forage for the evening, I found her on a roost outside the closed pop door, just waiting. Given this is my first experience, I thought there was something wrong with her, and that she did not want to be with the rest of the flock, being perched like that - so out of the ordinary. But she was waiting to get back into the henhouse. I opened the henhouse door, went about my chores, only for her to find her making her way back to a nest box. After removing her from the nest several times, placing her outside to forage, she continued to return to the nest box.

So we set her up in a dog crate inside the coop, outfitted with a roost, water and food. Put her in the crate at roost time, and will start counting day one tomorrow. Plan to keep her on the wire floor for 4 days (recommended in another post) in hopes of breaking the cycle. If my heart can take it. I was not prepared for how torn I feel now that we are in this situation. It feels like a crime against nature. Hopefully four days does the trick.

It’s not fun, but it’s healthier for her to snap out of it if she isn’t going to hatch eggs. Four days isn’t that long. You can do it! Good luck.

 

[aart]

So we set her up in a dog crate inside the coop, outfitted with a roost, water and food.

Is the crate up off the floor?
Hopefully it doesn't get too hot in your coop.
When I break them during a heat wave have to move crate around outside to keep it the shade.

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

I used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.

 

[RedLionChooks]

Is the crate up off the floor?
Hopefully it doesn't get too hot in your coop.
When I break them during a heat wave have to move crate around outside to keep it the shade.

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

I used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.
View attachment 2259700

Good morning, Aart! Thanks for your reply - so nice to know there are folks out there who are willing to share their experience, and give a confidence boost to less experienced chicken keepers

Yes, the crate is off the floor, with a roosting branch. She seemed much more like herself this morning after spending the night there. Less puffed up, looked more normal. She was eating and the rest of the flock was fine about it. I will try your recommendation to let her out in the evening, and see if she makes a line for the nest. Last night, I put her on the roost when the rest were roosting, and she still hopped down and into the nest. So I scooped her out and put her in the crate where she spent the night. I believe I caught it pretty quickly, within 24 hours. Does that matter in any way - how long they have been on the path to brood?

I can say from my own experience with hormones at age 46, that nature is SERIOUS about writing a code. I know I am not the only one with conflicting thoughts on messing around with nature, yet here I am, attempting to detour an unwanted outcome - as if there are not enough other things in the world I cannot control!

Thanks again for the guidance. There can never be enough input from those with more experience

 

[aart]

Does that matter in any way - how long they have been on the path to brood?

It can.
The longer they are allowed to set, the longer it can take to break them.
Best to keep crate in coop at night, or put it somewhere else safe, rather than let them roost.