One of my hens was sitting the last two days on a nest. I thought that she wants to have chicks so i tried not to bother her. This morning I went there to put some more eggs, and I found the nest empty!!! Earlier in the morning she was still in the nest though. So, did she or someone else eat the egg? Or somehow she is hiding the eggs? Thanx in advance
That happened to me once and I have never figured it out. I had a hen sitting on 4 eggs (they were marked). A little later in the day, one was gone. I looked everywhere, for an egg, yoke stains, little pieces of shell...nothing. My coop is very secure and closed up all day so nothing could have gotten in to steal it. I even checked all of their beaks looking for any signs of egg...nothing. This was over 2 months ago and the mystery has never been solved. Do you think aliens need our eggs like they need our water?
When eggs mysteriously disappear in my coop I look for the snake. Young Rat snakes can get in through 1/4" hardware cloth -- but not necessarily out if they have a full tummy. To me the best way to tell whether a hen is broody is to find out whether they are also sleeping in the nest. I like to give them a couple of days and nights. Finding her off the nest once really doesn't mean much as she is supposed to get up once daily to take care of eating, etc. I think some broodies do better with eggs (or fake eggs) under them, but certainly many will sit on an empty nest. http://www.themodernhomestead.us/article/Broody-Hens-1.html
One more thing. When a hen sit on the eggs to have chicks, how many hours per day she sits on them? I saw her now far for the nest eating.
Quote:If you do have egg eaters, you won't see any signs of egg on their beaks. They don't like to have messy beaks so wipe them off any time they feel anything on them. Unless you catch them in the act of eating, by the time you start looking for a missing egg, all beaks will be clean.
Did she actually have any eggs under her that you saw to begin with? Often times when a hen (especially a young one) goes into broody mode they don't necessarily have an egg under them. The broody mode is a hormonal thing that triggers the need to "nest". If they have never been broody before or if they aren't particularly good at it (which a lot of hens aren't) then they may never put any eggs under them. And if you did put any under her she may not stay on them. Hence the getting up and wandering far from the nest and staying off for long periods of time. A hen who is going to go the distance and hatch the eggs is pretty hard to get off the nest, usually have to be forced. That's why people keep food and water close by (but not right at) the nest, so they will be encouraged to eat and drink and not poop on the nest! Cathryn
At this time of the year, I would look for Rats.. when its getting close to sundown, just hang around the coop, you will see if you have a rat getting in. Good Luck
