Hen is laying outside of roost, On the Ground. Need Ideas

[Kershylyn]

I have a hen that has laid her eggs on the ground in the tall grass. She is now exposed to predators, we live in the stixs. I am new at this so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Can I move the eggs? Should I even move them? I don't want her to abandon them. I am thrilled that she is doing this all natural. Should I build something up around her and her eggs? Thank You for any advice you can give.

 

[RooDen]

You can go ahead and move the eggs, the hen won't be bothered but she might come again to lay in the open. You'll have to keep an eye out where she goes to lay eggs. If she lays regularly at one particular time like early morning or noon then you can put her in the coop during that time. Hopefully she'll know the right place for laying eggs.

 

[Pork Pie]

If you move her eggs, you are taking a chance that she will not continue to sit but that may not be the end of the world. If she doesn't then wait until she goes broody again.

To be honest, I would do as RooDen suggests and encourage her to lay in the coop - that way, in the future, you can remove eggs and then return them to her when you are sure she is committed to being broody. Placing all the eggs under her (not more than 10 days old) at once will result in a hatch that is synchronised (within a day or so) and thus you are likely to have a higher success rate.

All the best

CT

 

[Kershylyn]

Thank You very much for the advice and information. It is duly noted and I am very appreciative. I don't know what happened, but she quit laying on them. Now she is just using the spot to lay more eggs. I am just thankful that she did not getting eaten by a critter and that she is at least experimenting at the time. She will be a good Momma hen, someday, she is only 6 months old, so were off to a good start. That's a whole new learning curve that I foresee in the near future. Thank you again for your time and for responding so soon. Sorry I did not get back to you sooner. Take Care.

 

[Pork Pie]

Thank You very much for the advice and information. It is duly noted and I am very appreciative. I don't know what happened, but she quit laying on them. Now she is just using the spot to lay more eggs. I am just thankful that she did not getting eaten by a critter and that she is at least experimenting at the time. She will be a good Momma hen, someday, she is only 6 months old, so were off to a good start. That's a whole new learning curve that I foresee in the near future. Thank you again for your time and for responding so soon. Sorry I did not get back to you sooner. Take Care.

You are most welcome and yep, 6 months is maybe a little too early for her to be a good mother - she'll get there soon enough. Theres nothing nicer than seeing a mother and chicks bombing around the place!

Cheers
CT