Feeding a broody hen?

[greenbean62657]

Our lovely Lucy has decided to go broody - and is sitting on 3 eggs. Being the doting parents, we offer her food and an occasional grub or two - plus water in her nest. Are we making a mistake? Should we just let her go hungry? She eats when we offer - not a lot but some. We'll lay off if this is bad for her. (Lucy is a Buff Orphington of unknown age)

 

[the4heathernsmom]

I always give my broody her own food and water ..... I don't think it can harm them or their broodiness in any way

 

[Cackling Hen]

NO dont let her go hungry just keep the food and water infront of her at all time

Good luck

 

[Tamrajh]

I've wondered the same thing for my geese. Sometimes they don't get off at all to even stretch their legs.

 

[lishah2000]

I don't give my broodies anything special. They get up once or twice a day, let out a big screech and do a big stretch. They then drive everyone crazy with their clucking and get a bite to eat and something to drink. Sometimes take a quick dust bath.

Food and water is inside the coop and they walk past it to go outside. They always eat and drink outside.

I do offer and put food and water near during the hatch. Sometimes they take it and sometimes they don't.

 

[tammyd57]

My broody has been on her eggs for 6 days now and I've only seen her off the nest once. She is in a separate small part of the main pen with her own food & water about a foot or two away from the nest. The level of the food isn't going down. I guess she's just a serious broody.

 

[PunkinPeep]

I don't think that it hurts anything to keep food and water with her in the nest unless there's a danger of her getting the eggs wet by tipping the water or something.

I, personally, did not opt to do that.

I did give them their own supply of food in the evening when i fed the flock, but i depended on them to get up and poop and drink, which they did. I have heard of folks who've had broodies who would sit there and starve themselves, but that wasn't my experience.

I've had 3 buff orp and one barred rock broody so far.

 

[vnploveschickens]

I just had my buff orpington, Luna, go broody. She hatched 2 of 3 eggs. It was her first time. Luna let me take her off the nest 2x daily. She ate a little, drank a little, squawked a lot. She stretched, preened, ran outside, pooped (the really big, stinky kind), maybe a dust bath too. Then ran back into the coop, jumped back into the nest. No problems. I'd make her a little rice/scrambled eggs/yogurt treat every other day too. She really loved that!

 

[Knotty Roz]

I am new to chickens I have a young hen sitting on 3 eggs for the past 13 days I moved her and her eggs into a dog cage and shut the cage she has water in a pie tin and food some starter feed and scratch feed and drymeal worms although I am still confused with what I should be feeding her. I put a few pices of dry cat food today to see if she would eat she ate the cat food that's a relief for me. Should I worry she's not eating or moving much I haven't really camped out on her I have left her alone I check on her on and off thru out the day she seams fine to my untrained eye. Any suggestions on what for I should give her.