Broody?

[momseev]

I have 6 hens and a rooster (just down from 3). The rooster seems to have singled out one of the hens and I see them roaming off alone quite often. Recently she has decided she doesn't want to lay in the nesting boxes anymore. She was going in the shed until we cleaned it out, then under an old brooder cage in their run, the front porch, even behind the propane tanks. I finally made her a little cage in the run and kept her locked up in the run (even put her in the cage) yesterday until she laid. I thought maybe she didn't like it because the two of them were out roaming today, but she did go back and lay there. My question: could she be going broody? When I discovered the eggs under the brooder there were 10 there - I couldn't believe it. I collected them and tested them in water and they were all fine so they went in the fridge. I would love to have a hen go broody, but after she lays the egg she leaves it and still sleeps in the coop and night, so I'm not sure if she just doesn't like the nesting boxes or the other girls are being mean to her. It's really amusing to see her and the rooster. He will stay next to her while she is laying and "talk" to her. He shows his manliness to the other hens but she is definitely his favorite.

 

[Judy]

If she were going broody, I think she would sleep on her pile of eggs, and stay on it essentially 24/7. It's possible she thinks she is gathering a clutch of eggs to hatch, and will start setting on them soon. Broodies rarely if ever need eggs to go broody, though, so if she really is in the process of becoming fully broody, it shouldn't matter whether you leave the eggs or not, and she will hust start sitting, somewhere.

 

[momseev]

Okay, thanks for the input. Maybe the other hens give her a hard time. I do have another hen who seems to stay in the nest boxes longer than the others. I usually have to shoo her off after a while to collect eggs. Maybe she will be my broody hen. I'll have to watch and see.