Hen in the nesting box?!

[CLeber719]

Hey everyone! Super new to chickens with awesome luck...until now? I have a wonderful buff orpington hen that we raised from a chick. She has been amazing and laying one egg per day for several weeks/months. The last two days though, she has been sitting in the nesting box almost all day but hasn't laid an egg? We do have one rooster that is 4-5 months old. If they have mated, is she just nesting and planning on laying several fertilized eggs or is something wrong? I may sound dumb asking this but I just want to make sure she isn't egg bound and need medical attention. Thanks!

 

[britesidefarm]

Thanks! I don't think she's gone broody because she hasn't laid any eggs in 2 days. Otherwise I would assume she was broody. I took her out of the nesting box yesterday and today, she came out and immediately ate and drank but then back to the box. Im so confused by her behavior. Thanks for replying though!

It sound like she’s broody. Pullets/hens don’t lay while being broody, and for pullets it can be quite dangerous since their so young. Does she fluff up and/or growl at you when you touch her? If you take her out of the box, does she sit for a few seconds?

 

[NatJ]

Thanks! I don't think she's gone broody because she hasn't laid any eggs in 2 days. Otherwise I would assume she was broody. I took her out of the nesting box yesterday and today, she came out and immediately ate and drank but then back to the box. Im so confused by her behavior.

Broody is when a hen sits on eggs to try to hatch them.
She does not lay any more eggs while broody.

Because she lays all the eggs first, and then goes broody, the eggs will all start to develop at the same time, so they can all hatch at the same time. Then the hen switches from sitting on eggs to taking care of chicks.

I think your hen is broody.

It has nothing to do with the rooster--hens go broody even with no roosters around, even when their eggs are infertile, and sometimes even with no eggs at all. They do not seem able to think about whether this might actually produce chicks.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

It's a hormonal thing and you didn't do anything to cause it. There's nothing stupid about it, it's quite natural. Some breeds are more likely to go broody than others. What I have done with mine is to put them in a cage-type dog crate for three days to a week, elevated off the ground by setting it on some bricks. This creates air flow around the hen to cool her off. Be sure she has food, water and grit, and keep her where she can see and hear the other chickens. This way she shouldn't lose her place in the pecking order. You can put a length of 2x4 in with her to roost on, and you can let her out once a day to poop and dust bathe. If she heads right back to the nest, she's still broody, so put her back in the dog crate till she quits. Good luck!

 

[Eva2020]

Is she laying on an egg? She might have gone 'broody' meaning she is trying to hatch eggs (fertilized or not). Maybe try taking her out of the nesting box and putting her into the run or the coop. I'm no expert though so hopefully someone else will reply.

 

[britesidefarm]

Can you get a picture of her in the nesting box? Some pullets will lay one egg one day, and another weeks or days later. If she is broody, which is rare, you may have to put her in a small cage for a bit to break her out of it.

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

Yeah, we're not trying to have any more chickens at this time. Now that I know why she's acting this way, I'm going to research some methods to stop her behavior. Shes definitely my favorite and seeing her act this way is super concerning. Thanks for your help!

Unless I'm hatching chicks I never let them brood. It's taxing on their health.

 

[CLeber719]

Hey everyone! Super new to chickens with awesome luck...until now? I have a wonderful buff orpington hen that we raised from a chick. She has been amazing and laying one egg per day for several weeks/months. The last two days though, she has been sitting in the nesting box almost all day but hasn't laid an egg? We do have one rooster that is 4-5 months old. If they have mated, is she just nesting and planning on laying several fertilized eggs or is something wrong? I may sound dumb asking this but I just want to make sure she isn't egg bound and need medical attention. Thanks!

Thanks for your help everyone! Shes officially acting like a normal, not broody, friendly chicken again!

 

[CLeber719]

It sound like she’s broody. Pullets/hens don’t lay while being broody, and for pullets it can be quite dangerous since their so young. Does she fluff up and/or growl at you when you touch her? If you take her out of the box, does she sit for a few seconds?

Yes thats exactly what she does! She fluffs up and tries to flatten like a pancake when you pick her up out of the nesting box. Is that a sign of being broody? She's 8 months old. Is there something we did to make her this way and/or is there some way to fix being broody?

 

[ChemicalchiCkns]

It has nothing to do with the rooster--hens go broody even with no roosters around, even when their eggs are infertile, and sometimes even with no eggs at all. They do not seem able to think about whether this might actually produce chicks.

In a large flock setting (junglefowl origins) the common Nests would not be possible to know if the eggs were fertile or not. Setting with no Eggs at all sounds like "stupid broody" that I have heard breeds accused of.