Hen keeps running away!

[Lelilamom]

Our Buff keeps running away. She left the coop back in June for almost 3 weeks and came back and refused to go back in the coop. She spent the summer living under our camper and then left again last week for the whole week. She came back this past weekend screeching up a storm looking for food. I grabbed her and threw her in the coop, but now I can't let the chickens out because she'll get out and run away again!

She doesn't lay anymore and now she won't eat or drink when the other chickens are around (I have to get all the other girls out of the run and then physically put her in the run alone with the food and water) She just clucks at me when I get eggs and tries to escape. Winter is coming and I can't let her live outside the coop - we have a predator problem in the winter.

What do I do with her?

 

[lovemy6hens]

Keep doing what you're doing. It will take time, but she'll adapt.

 

[lazy gardener]

I wonder if she's broody, and has a nest somewhere. It may or may not have eggs in it. she may be brooding invisible eggs!!!

 

[Lelilamom]

I wonder if she's broody, and has a nest somewhere. It may or may not have eggs in it. she may be brooding invisible eggs!!!

She's most definitely broody. She does the broody dance, puffs out with her wings out. She's been broody since March and I've never been able to break her of it. She really got crazy on us when we culled our aggressive roo. She was his preferred hen. Once he was gone, the other hens just beat her up constantly, so I didn't mind her being out of the coop. They free ranged together and no one bothered her. Now that she's back in the coop, no one bothers her.