Chicken obsessed with nesting box!

[xXChickenTenderXx]

My chicken has been spending a lot of time in a nesting box. She is lays green eggs, so I can tell when she lays. She will get up to eat or drink and return back, even if she already laid. She has been doing this for awhile, but recently she has really been devoted to staying in there. Last night she even tried sleeping in the same box that she laid in. When I move her off, she doesn't hiss or try biting me, but she returns after a couple minutes. I am not sure that she is broody, and she is not egg bound. She has always taken a little longer to lay than the others, but she has been in the nesting box since ten in the morning. Is this normal?

 

[GoatGirl123]

How long has this been happening ? She sounds broody to me. If she is egg bound she will act lethargic , walk like a penguin (squat and waddle), and probably won’t eat or drink .

 

[xXChickenTenderXx]

No, she is definitely not egg bound. I have noticed that she has been more obsessed in the past two days.

 

[aart]

Probably broody.

 

[xXChickenTenderXx]

What are some ways of breaking her out of broodiness?

 

[aart]

What are some ways of breaking her out of broodiness?

First make sure she is actually broody.
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.


Using a breaker cage is the best and fastest way to break them, IMO.
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(1x2) on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

After 48 hours I let her out of crate very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate for another 48 hours.

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor, gives the feet a break from the wire floor and encourages roosting.

 

[xXChickenTenderXx]

This same chicken has stopped being broody but isn't laying. We haven't gotten an egg in a couple of days from her. She isn't acting like she is egg bound and is eating and drinking like normal. Is this normal after being broody?

 

[aart]

Is this normal after being broody?

Yes.
Was she truly broody...did you break her?

 

[xXChickenTenderXx]

It sounds like she was. I didn't move her out and isolate her. Instead, I broke her by kicking her out of the nesting box multiple times and I guess she got the memo.

 

[xXChickenTenderXx]

How long will my chicken not lay for? It has been awhile and no egg from her... she isn't acting lethargic or anything but...