Eggs Laying Around=Trigger Broodiness?

[MesMama]

I didn't get eggs gathered yesterday and this morning my "chronic broody" is sitting on them...could be she's just laying her egg...but I'm wondering if eggs left in the nesting box can trigger broodiness?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It can trigger broodiness. It isn't a sure thing but about half the time I've had one go broody, it was when there were a bunch of eggs. Sometimes they go broody with no eggs though.

 

[MesMama]

It can trigger broodiness. It isn't a sure thing but about half the time I've had one go broody, it was when there were a bunch of eggs. Sometimes they go broody with no eggs though.

Interesting! I've been wondering this for awhile now, just watching my girls and having the eggs left in there made me wonder

 

[ChickenCanoe]

In nature, that's the clue to begin setting. With all the disparate breeds we have now, some like silkies and cochins go broody at the drop of a hat and others like most Mediterranean breeds rarely do. That said, I had a black leghorn hen that raised a couple batches of chicks every year and an Orpington that never went broody.

 

[ChickenLegs13]

In my mind I'm convinced of it. If I gather the eggs several times a day I don't have much of a broody problem but if I get busy and leave a lot of eggs in the nests several days & overnight then 3-4 hens will go broody. Fact or just coincidence, not sure which.
I have several hens that have been in the Broody Jail 4, 5, & 6 times this year. If left on their own accord the same hens only go broody and hatch chicks twice a year.

 

[Deesel]

If I put golf balls in the nest boxes, will that cause them to go broody?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

In my mind I'm convinced of it. If I gather the eggs several times a day I don't have much of a broody problem but if I get busy and leave a lot of eggs in the nests several days & overnight then 3-4 hens will go broody. Fact or just coincidence, not sure which.
I have several hens that have been in the Broody Jail 4, 5, & 6 times this year. If left on their own accord the same hens only go broody and hatch chicks twice a year.

I think you're right.

If I put golf balls in the nest boxes, will that cause them to go broody?

It can but it isn't that simple. First I would say, what breeds are you talking about and what time of year?
It is virtually impossible with hy-line poultry that have been selected to lay daily and not set. If you want them to set, make the nest attractive for such and keep golf balls or fake eggs in there. If you don't want setters, make the nest less attractive. Keep its light brighter and nest pad less comfortable.

 

[Deesel]

I think you're right.



It can but it isn't that simple. First I would say, what breeds are you talking about and what time of year?
It is virtually impossible with hy-line poultry that have been selected to lay daily and not set. If you want them to set, make the nest attractive for such and keep golf balls or fake eggs in there. If you don't want setters, make the nest less attractive. Keep its light brighter and nest pad less comfortable.

I have Isa browns and some barn yard variety and I would like them to lay in the nest boxes instead of on the ground, so I was going to put some golf balls in the boxes. But I don't want them to.go broody.

 

[junebuggena]

I have never had a bunch of eggs 'trigger' broodiness. And my girls are fond of hiding them and building up stashes. It's not been a cause for broodiness. And I do have two broody-prone Australorp hens.

 

[Little Fuzzy]

I keep fake eggs in the nests. When my bird went broody I took out the fake eggs she was sitting on, but then all the chickens started laying on the floor under the shelf the nesting boxes sit on. Very inconvenient since I am disabled with a bad back.