Coop d'Shame- broody chicken, cracked eggs, hiding rooster

[ejerud]

Help!!

We went away for 3 days left the chickens to their own devices. When it is a longer period of time, we ask the neighbors to watch them. But they're self sufficient, with a feeder and waterer so they've always been ok for brief periods alone. They have a big coop and enclosed run, with plenty of space.

For 2 straight days before we left, we noticed one of our buff orpingtons was sitting all day in the laying box. 3 days later, she is still sitting there on our return, without any eggs under her! We removed the eggs she was sitting on before we left.

Meanwhile, the other two laying boxes each had a cracked egg in it. I don't know if they cracked and ate them, or if there just wasn't enough bedding and they cracked on their own.

Finally, we have been getting blood spots in our eggs. Despite our two orpingtons and our two rhode island reds looking identical to each other, respectively, I think there is a rooster hiding in the bunch. They are 16 months old.

So, in order of concern:
1) broody hen
2) hiding rooster
3) cracked eggs

Any suggestions? What a disaster to return to!

 

[MossyoakLane]

A blood spot does not mean your eggs are fertilized. Just that there is a blood spot....
The 2 things are totally separate.

I am not understanding your question about the broody?

 

[ejerud]

Thanks for your reply. It seems like more than an occasional blood spot. Some of them actually look like early embryos.

As for the broody hen- she has been sitting constantly in the laying box- as far as I can tell for 5 straight days.

 

[MossyoakLane]

You cannot tell a fertilized egg from an unfertilzed egg unless they have been incubated (by a broody, or incubator). The blood spots, are most likely just blood spots. I am willing to bet you have one hen who is doing it. Do you have a ehn that looks rooster like? How old are your chickens?

Have you tried taking the broody off of the nest? Try kicking her off of it several times, and don't leave eggs sit under her. If that does not work, I would search "broody breaker"....on the forums.

 

[Farmer Viola]

Can you post pictures of the roo/hen imposter?

 

[Mrs. K]

If you hens are 16 months old, you would KNOW if you had a rooster. He would be much taller than your hens, and he would crow. I don't think you have one. By 12 months most roosters are self evident.

As for the broody, you can wait and do nothing, you can break the broody hen, see forum, or you can wait a couple more weeks and go slip a couple of day old live chicks under her. Nothing cuter than a broody hen and chicks.

Cracked eggs sometimes happen, especially if the bedding in the nest has gotten thin, or if there is a pile of eggs in the nest.
Even if the chickens ate it up, I would not worry about it.

Mrs K