Enticing a broody to sit

[casportpony]

My hens are laying so many eggs right now. I feed two dozen a week back to them, another dozen to my dogs, I give away about 2 dozen a week, and my husband eats 3 a day. Today I decided to place a fresh (today's only) dozen in a nesting box so that my proven broody mama can see them. Hopefully she will decide to sit. A couple of new eggs have been deposited in there within the last couple of hours but Lucy hasn't found them so far.
I'm not going to interfere at all. No moving the eggs, no candeling, nothing.
I may, however block the nest off from the others if she decides to sit. She is the top hen and her rooster's favorite. She has been broody about 4x in the last two years. I let her hatch last spring (2 little cockrells) and she went broody once in the fall but was very easy to break. I'm wondering if she has lost the desire to hatch. I'll know soon.
Nothing ventured....
View attachment 1736216

Save this picture for next year's natural egg picture contest! It is lovely!

 

[janiedoe]

Thank you @casportpony. Natural eggs are the prettiest, I think. I am so gullible; when I bought my langshan I thought I would get cranberry colored eggs. Darn the internet & it's retouched photos!

 

[casportpony]

Thank you @casportpony. Natural eggs are the prettiest, I think. I am so gullible; when I bought my langshan I thought I would get cranberry colored eggs. Darn the internet & it's retouched photos!

your picture is beautiful!

Yeah, darn internet, Google purple peafowl and you will see some really good examples of that. They do exist, but they don't look like the majority of pictures on the internet.

 

[janiedoe]

your picture is beautiful!

Yeah, darn internet, Google purple peafowl and you will see some really good examples of that. They do exist, but they don't look like the majority of pictures on the internet.

Your avatar is beautiful. I've always loved peafowl....maybe some day.

 

[janiedoe]

4 broodies now. 31 eggs! One is co-sitting with her best friend. She took half her eggs.
Raining (AGAIN) today, can't work outside so I made a silly collage.