Help! Free-ranging broody hen and absentee fathers?

[palrusty12]

I have a flock of 5 to 7 month old pullets. THey are Black Copper Marans and Speckled Sussex. They are all cooped at night, but I'm very lucky to somehow be getting away with free-ranging by day while we are finishing the coop run (several months in the going, because, ugh, life).

• Question #1: How worried should I be about my missing broody??

Princess was the first to lay and was very upset to find pullet number two's eggs in "her" nesting box. I had to go out all day and collect eggs every time I heard her cry-babying. She immediately quit laying in the boxes. It was easy to tell as the Marans were the girls who started to lay next. I shrugged and figured once we finished the run we'd close them all up for a bit and get everyone down to business proper.

Fast forward 6 weeks and now she has not come back to the coop at night for two days. I've spotted her briefly each morning when the rest of the flock comes out, but never quick enough to secure her.
I'm fine with her being broody, but I worry about her out at night.

We've not had predator problems (knock on wood - good dogs!) and have even had two incidences of the coop being left open overnight with no problem. What experiences have you all had with free range broodies? Part of me wants to let nature run its course, but I don't want my laissez faire attitude to cost Princess her life. I can't find her anywhere, but could get more assertive about waiting for her to come feed.

*Disclaimer - she's Princess because she loved the boys first and when they were rehomed decided she was in charge now. Diva, Empress, Megalomaniac, would have all sufficed.

• Question #2: This leads me to question two about absentee fathers. Could she actually be sitting on fertilized eggs?

All my chicks were bought straight run, so I've had many cockerels come and then go when they start to realize they are boys, but usually there's a good week or longer of teenage boy attempts at mating. The cockerels were rehomed 3 months ago (Speckled Sussex), 1 month ago (Copper Marans), and 2 weeks ago (Speckled Sussex).

How long has she been collecting her clutch? How long could she still have been laying fertilized eggs?

I realize this was alot! But thank you for your help! This is my first experience with a broody and I want to be sure I'm doing right by her.

 

[bobbi-j]

Any chicken - broody or not - is vulnerable to predators at night. If you want to keep your chicken safe, you need to find out where her nest is and move her. You could try candling the eggs to see if they're fertile.

 

[palrusty12]

Well, I found her luckily and set her up in my small chicken tractor. She was sitting on 16 eggs! Thanks for your thoughts bobbi-j!