First time Chicken owner

[FowlPrincess]

Hi all,

I have my first flock YAY! The oldest 2 chickens are Ariel (Red Star) and Esmarelda (Black Australorp). They are 6 months old and no eggs, so a few days ago I picked up some fake eggs at put them in a nesting box. Two days ago, we get our first egg! My question is, can a chicken go broody after only 1 egg? I took it out and left the two fakes in the nest. Today she was hollering up a storm in the coup making a nest and yelling at the other chickens. It was hilarious. She sat in there for a while, laid her second egg and then went out to eat.

Does it sound like she is going broody or is this just normal laying behavior? Ariel is a very vocal chicken normally, full of personality,but doesn't normally holler at everyone. lol

 

[mrchicks]

Congrats on getting eggs!

Some hens are much more vocal about it than others. I have a few that kick up a fuss for a good five minutes before and after they lay. And two that just have fits if someone is in the nest box that they want to use. Others don't make a sound.

 

[ShockValue]

If she didn't fluff up and hunker down on the egg, I would guess she's just vocal about laying.

 

[iwiw60]

I'm SO jealous!! I've got 1-1/2 to 2 months more to go before mine will begin to lay...aaack!!

 

[ShockValue]

Me too iwiw... Today we hung curtains on the nest boxes and put in some golf balls. They seemed totally uninterested.

 

[iwiw60]

Me too iwiw... Today we hung curtains on the nest boxes and put in some golf balls. They seemed totally uninterested.

Uh-oh....if your chickens are not "laying" yet be sure to block access to those nesting boxes. They should not be allowed in them until then...why? Because if they get used to sleeping in them they won't use them for the intended purpose...laying eggs! I'm blocking mine with a small piece of thin plywood tacked up...just FYI!!

 

[ShockValue]

They've been open about a week with no issues. The roost is well above the level of the boxes, so they're doing what they're supposed to do

 

[Ridgerunner]

Personally I want the nests open before the pullets start to lay. I want that first egg to be laid in a nest. Chickens are creatures of habit. If their first egg is not laid in a nest, they can be hard to train to use a nest.

Another reason I want the nests open before they start to lay is that if they are sleeping in the nests I want to know that so I can correct the problem before I get poopy eggs.

They should not be sleeping in the nests. The roosts should be higher than the nests and they should be sleeping up on the roosts, but occasionally you do get some that will sleep in the nests instead of on the roosts. Usually that means you have a bully that is picking on the weaker ones while they are on the roosts, so the ones getting picked on look for a safer place to sleep. Often that is a nest. How do you fix it? Give them a better safe place to sleep, say a roost that is a bit lower than the main roosts but still higher than your nests and off to the side.

But I would not create a problem, them not laying in the nests, by trying to fix a problem that might never exist. Open the nests up and see if you have a problem.

 

[FowlPrincess]

Now that she has started to lay, should I remove the 2 fake eggs or wait until the Australorp starts to lay?

 

[aart]

Now that she has started to lay, should I remove the 2 fake eggs or wait until the Australorp starts to lay?

I leave a couple golf balls in all my nests all the time, I think it might help the 'favorite' nest syndrome.