Hope you all can help me. I have a silkie, about 7 months old, that suddenly won't leave the nest boxes. She has moved from one nest box to another, but won't come out of the hen house (they free-range). Last night I brought her inside, thinking she will get too cold at night if she is unable to huddle with the other hens. This morning, in my basement, she is eating like a little piggy. Is this what a broody hen is??? It is true that each time I find her in a nest box, she is sitting on 3-4 eggs that are not hers. Her physical exam is normal, no neuro signs, poop is normal, etc. She is a little skinny though. The other thing that might be a factor is that we gave away our 2 roosters about 3 weeks ago. Thanks for your help!
Sounds broody to me. One of our BR went broody at 6 months old! I think all have done it at least once now and they are only just a year old! They get sent to "time out" and go back to laying in about 10 days... good luck!
It's good that you checked her for other signs of ailment anyway. But this sounds like classic broody behavior, for which silkies are famous. There's a lot of info already here about special care & housing for broodies if you decide she should incubate some eggs for you, and also info about how to break a broody's spell. But don't hesitate to ask for more info here if you still need help, that's what we're here for.
