Hen broodines

[Theaseelrooster1981]

Hello everyone I have a question l,I'm here to ask if a hen can go broody if the nesting box is in a dark spot.

 

[cluckadoodledoo13]

Hello everyone I have a question l,I'm here to ask if a hen can go broody if the nesting box is in a dark spot.

I shouldn’t see why not!

 

[cluckadoodledoo13]

I shouldn’t see why not!

If you want her to go broody then encourage her with golf balls or wooden eggs. It also depends on the breed.

 

[Theaseelrooster1981]

I have 1 gamefowl hen,1 blue wyandotte hen,1 Plymouth rock hen,1 Easter egger hen,1sapphire blue hen and a Easter egger/olive egger cross hen
I dont know wich one might be more broody

 

[Gallinarium]

Some hens will go broody, others will not. If you would like to smoke one out, try giving her fake eggs. Increasing daylight hours, naturally or artificially, will also help.
A lot depends on the breed. Usually the most productive ones won't go broody. What breed is she?

 

[Theaseelrooster1981]

None of them but the gamefowl hen makes nest like she searches for materials and makes nest and my Plymouth rock packs me when I get the eggs even tho she isn't in the nesting box

 

[Gallinarium]

Gamefowl hens are usually apt to brood, as are Plymouth Rocks. I would just give em' some fake eggs and wait and see.
Hens will usually act broody, as in making a nice nest and rolling any eggs in it under them, right before laying due to a surge of hormones. Usually it dies off after the egg is laid, but it won't if they're broody. Those signs you describe are both good, but only if it's consistent.

 

[Theaseelrooster1981]

Thank yall for the responses everyone I do have one more question and it might sound silly,I have 1 Rhode island white roosters and a red barnyard mix rooster and I'll like to see or know what a gamefowl crossed with egg layer chicken look like

 

[igorsMistress]

You never know who will go broody when. For what it's worth my flock has nests in their coop and some outside. My current broody chose an outside nest, not one in the darker coop.

 

[Ridgerunner]

to ask if a hen can go broody if the nesting box is in a dark spot.

I've had hens go broody in some really dark spots, I've had hens go broody in pretty bright spots. We may have our opinions but the only one that counts is the hen's. She's going to do what she is going to do.

I have 1 gamefowl hen,1 blue wyandotte hen,1 Plymouth rock hen,1 Easter egger hen,1sapphire blue hen and a Easter egger/olive egger cross hen
I dont know wich one might be more broody

Many hens never go broody. Any hen of any breed can go broody. You cannot make one go broody. Seems like the more you want a broody the less likely it is that one will go broody. It can be frustrating. It does no good to get a Kentucky Fried poster to show them and explain what is their future if they don't go broody. They just ignore you.

Some breeds have mostly had the broodiness bred out of them. A hen of that breed can go broody but it's pretty rare. Your Rock and Wyandotte fall into that category. I don't remember the heritage of your Sapphire Blue, but I'd think not likely. EE's and OE's are not breeds, they don't have tendencies. There is no telling what might happen with them. Your Game hen is your best bet, Games have a reputation of frequently going broody.

One of the problems with this is that strain is more important than breed. If the person selecting which chickens get to breed purposely selects for hens that go broody, any breed can frequently go broody, even Rhode Island Reds or Leghorns that have a reputation of never going broody. My EE's went broody a lot, but I bred them to do that. I kept my replacement hens and rooster from eggs laid by a hen that went broody. In a couple of generations practically every hen went broody at least once a year, some three or four times a year. If the person selecting which get to breed select against hens going broody you pretty soon get a flock of hens that hardly ever goes broody.

The only way you can have any control over the eggs hatching is to get an incubator.