Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[RoyalChick]

My assumption is that in the wild nest destruction is a relatively common experience for a hen. Lots of predators will take their eggs and if the hen gets away with her life she's had a result. Here, after many broody hens they all seem to know to leave their nests. When I first started some needed some encouragement to the point of shutting them out of their nest sites for half an hour or more and bum shoving them around to get them moving and fully awake. This is what I was told to do by a couple of the keepers here where I live who have had considerable experience in dealing with 'institutionalized' hens. My belief is for most, the instincts are not bred out of them, just suppressed. Given the right circumstances they have here at least returned to what would seem to be their ancestors and more natural behavior.
A hen that just sits on her nest and doesn't get off to eat etc is going to die.
I am lucky in that I was exposed to free range chicken keeping in my youth. I also saw the other side with the thousands of battery hens that were kept on the farm I spent my youth on.While keeping circumstances dictate what is and isn't practicable the error I find repeated on this forum and others is that somehow the 'natural' responses of chickens change through breeding and keeping arrangements. I don't believe this is the case. All chickens bar breeds like Cornish X and possibly some long bred Leghorns and other battery favorites have 'natural' responses, much like any other creature. It is not until the circumstances allow it that these innate behaviors are demonstrated.
I believe for example that for most who prevent broodiness by using the wire cage method would get the same result by removing the eggs and destroying the nest. But, with contained chickens this often isn't practicable.

Very interesting.

 

[RoyalChick]

Well the video is at the wrong angle, but it’s the Brahma, Buttercup who screeches here. I took the egg, took her out, dipped her legs (she actually likes it) and she was done with it. Does this seem like a broody screech to you?

I have definitely not heard any of my ladies make a sound like that. Mind you, when Maggie sits in the nest after laying her egg I figure she wants some peace and quiet so I haven't ever tried moving her or taking her egg out from under her.

 

[ValerieJ]

I would much rather not send Charlie to broody jail, but I can’t really ‘destroy’ the nest as I have dedicated prefab coops. I hate caging her though.

I have never put a broody in a cage. Surly Girl went broody 5 or 6 times over the last year and I had to break her because we had no rooster. Now with the addition of Pippi, when she went broody I was able to allow her to sit on the eggs.

What I have done in the past with her is to take her off the nest every day, set her out in the run, and gather the eggs. This would take 3 days, give or take, and she'd be okay for a month or so until she went broody again. I was so happy when I got a couple cockerels and couldn't wait for them to grow up.

 

[LozzyR]

I have never put a broody in a cage. Surly Girl went broody 5 or 6 times over the last year and I had to break her because we had no rooster. Now with the addition of Pippi, when she went broody I was able to allow her to sit on the eggs.

What I have done in the past with her is to take her off the nest every day, set her out in the run, and gather the eggs. This would take 3 days, give or take, and she'd be okay for a month or so until she went broody again. I was so happy when I got a couple cockerels and couldn't wait for them to grow up.

Charlie doesn’t roost at night so she doesn’t get air circulating under her. I made her a roost but she refused to use it. I haven’t tried leaving her to see if she snaps out of it by herself.

 

[BY Bob]

OK, sorry I keep talking about broodiness on the thread. But now I feel like the worst chicken mom ever. Poor Ester was not broody. The egg in the little red coop was from yesterday. She wanted to get back into her favorite laying spot, not back in to sit on an egg. I’m an idiot. She just laid an egg in the big coop.

So as of this moment, the only one with an issue seems to be Buttercup. She is indeed screeching from the box, but last I checked, there was not an egg under her.

No worries they can be confusing at times. Plus we are all broodie obsessed right now.

 

[BY Bob]

Join the club. There are days when I wish I had had more resolve when they started their take over bid for my territory.
On busy days it's a lot of work cleaning up and the chances of taking a quick nap with a couple of roosters shouting the odds a couple of yards from your bed are remote to say the least.
On the plus side I get to see things many chicken keepers never see and over time I've come to realize that I'm not quite the superior being some would have me believe.
My best advice.....get the floor tiled!

It is the plan to tile the floor but I must raise the funds first. It is not cheap unfortunately.

 

[BY Bob]

Why Would Lilly stay inside?

This is why! Bear in mind we usually swim in the pool on Mother's Day, which is tomorrow!

 

[ValerieJ]

Charlie doesn’t roost at night so she doesn’t get air circulating under her. I made her a roost but she refused to use it. I haven’t tried leaving her to see if she snaps out of it by herself.

Surly Girl has never roosted either. I would take her out of the nest box and put her on the ground. One of the reasons we needed the new coop is because I had a few girls that preferred to sleep in the nest boxes. Surly has never been in the new coop, so she has still never roosted. Really, it was just a matter of taking her out of the nest box and putting her on the ground. There would be food and water nearby and she would get distracted. If she went back immediately, I would take her out again. This has worked for me, but you may have a more stubborn gal.

 

[ValerieJ]

Why Would Lilly stay inside?

This is why! Bear in mind we usually swim in the pool on Mother's Day, which is tomorrow!

I don't blame her! I would stay inside too!

 

[micstrachan]

I'm just a bit inconsiderate with my words michelle. I don't think as much as I should about what others may feel, so do not for a moment feel that you have caused any kind of problem.

Thank you, Shad.