Do chickens fake it?

[FreeBirthMama]

I have a year old hen who has been making a nest in the doghouse for several weeks. She goes in and sits on it for a few hours each morning, then emerges suddenly making her egg call. I've only ever found one egg there, in probably 8-10 weeks of seeing her do this daily. She is not broody, just pretending to nest and lay. Never see her in the nesting box anymore, though before this doghouse business, she laid there regularly. Do hens really fake it sometimes?

 

[chickens really]

She is not Faking it....She started a habit to use the dog house to lay her egg...Block off the dog house part of the day or lock her in the coop to recondition her to use the nest boxes..Might take a week or two?

Good luck

 

[FreeBirthMama]

But she's not laying eggs at all. I only found one in there a few weeks after she started nesting there, and I don't even think it was hers as I saw another hen there that day. Only ever found that one egg in the doghouse. She sits there every day and comes out doing the egg call. Then she joins the flock as usual.

 

[FreeBirthMama]

But she's not laying eggs at all. I only found one in there a few weeks after she started nesting there, and I don't even think it was hers as I saw another hen there that day. Only ever found that one egg in the doghouse. She sits there every day and comes out doing the egg call. Then she joins the flock as usual.

 

[chickens really]

But she's not laying eggs at all. I only found one in there a few weeks after she started nesting there, and I don't even think it was hers as I saw another hen there that day. Only ever found that one egg in the doghouse. She sits there every day and comes out doing the egg call. Then she joins the flock as usual.

Sounds like she is getting ready to lay....She likes that spot...Try locking her in the coop/run for a few days and see if she picks a better spot to start laying in? My older pullets are 16 weeks today...I put in my nest boxes on Monday...My one Danish Brown is excited...She is in and out of the boxes singing all morning...No eggs and I do not expect any for a few weeks...They just get that way...Normal.

 

[FreeBirthMama]

If she were a pullet I would understand, but she had been laying in the nesting boxes, in the coop since last fall. She stopped going into the nesting box to create this nest and also stopped laying, though she mimics the behaviour. Its just strange.

 

[Nineplus5]

I have a couple like that. Thought they were just doing a singalong with a friend. I don't think so now.

 

[chickens really]

If she were a pullet I would understand, but she had been laying in the nesting boxes, in the coop since last fall. She stopped going into the nesting box to create this nest and also stopped laying, though she mimics the behaviour. Its just strange.

As I said....She found a better place....Just being a Chicken...

 

[aart]

Yes, they do 'fake it'.
I've had several hens go thru all the motions..... sit in the nest, sometimes for a long time, sometimes several times a day, sing the song..and yet not lay an eggs.
Who knows why<shrugs>sometimes there is no reason that we will ever understand.

She might be contemplating going broody.
Is she 12 months old or more like 18 months old?