help! Is my chicken broody? No decrease in egg production though...

[chookiemama]

HI, I'm new to this chicken keeping lark, and was after some help. My Bovan Nera is about 24 weeks old, started laying at 17 weeks, and seems to be broody. She's sitting in the coop all day but does sprint out when I open it up in the morning. I've checked all the normal things, and she seems healthy, she's just reluctant to leave her coop. I've had no decrease in egg production (have three hens and get three eggs a day). The other two are not affected at all. I've been picking her up and locking her out today (quite to her annoyance) and she's eating and drinking normally. Any suggestions? I'm paranoid something is drastically wrong, and I have missed it!

 

[heatherkh]

If she's still laying, she could be gearing up to being fully broody. Is she actually glued to a nest all day long (setting on the eggs laid that day), or just sitting in the coop in general? I've had two Black Australorps go full on broody, and both would not leave the nesting boxes and completely stopped laying. We let one hatch out some chicks, and the other we put in a wire bottom cage on it's own for about 4 days until it was no longer broody. She started laying again about a week after we put it back with the flock.

Other physical signs of broodiness are puffed out feathers, that repetitive broody "cluckcluckcluckcluck" and aggression.

There are a few ways you can break broody behavior - isolation in a wire bottom cage (with no nest box) is one, I've also heard you can dunk their hind ends in cold water a few times. But if she's still laying I'd hold off.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I doubt it.
If she was broody she'd be sitting in the nest.
Check her vent for pulsing and does she appear to be straining or making any weird sounds.
Just hanging out near the nest might mean egg bound.

 

[heatherkh]

Quote:
She said she's been getting one egg a day from this particular hen, so I'm guessing not egg bound.

 

[chookiemama]

Hi, she's sitting in the nest box, on top of any eggs that are laid. I'm picking her up and removing the eggs, then today decided to turf her out! She's leaving to eat and is still perky, she's definitely got the puffed up feathers and cluck noises going on (and one weird noise that sounds almost like a cat), so I'm going to go with hitting full on broody! Have no rooster, so couldn't get a fertile egg. Will try the cold water thing if it persists. Thanks for your help.

 

[chookiemama]

Sorry ChickenCanoe, she doesn't appear to be straining. Don't think she is egg bound. Still getting one a day from her. From everything I read, I think its broody. Just needed reassurance. I was under the impression hens were older when they got broody, and not in the Autumn time. Hope its nothing more!

 

[heatherkh]

From what I read, hens can go broody any time of the year and some do go broody quite early. Sounds like that's what it is, they're kind of funny when they're broody. The running, the puffing up like a turkey, the clucking. Hope you're able to break her w/o too much fuss.

 

[chookiemama]

Thanks. Quite weird scary noises too! Didn't expect that.