hen refusing to get out of the laying box and cone is floppy

[hxgumdrop]

I have 3hens and 2seem fine however the other has stayed in the laying box for three days straight now and only gets out when I take her out and make her eat and drink. She laid the first day so thought she was just broody and kept taking her out of the box but she hasnt laid today or yesterday and has hardly eaten or drank anything. Her crown is really floppy but doesnt look discoloured any ideas what might be wrong with her? He has just turned 6months old

 

[TOP KNOT]

She sounds broody. I have a 25 week old cochin who went broody....so I gave her some eggs to sit on. I couldn't get her to stay out of the nest box so hatch away.

 

[cafarmgirl]

How does she act when you take her off the nest? A broody hen will be cranky and make cranky noises but she will go and take a big, long drink, she will eat and poop, she may flap her wings and run around a bit and then she'll run right back to the nest.

A sick bird most likely won't do any of that but may just stand around or otherwise find someplace out of the way to just sit.

 

[hxgumdrop]

I dpnt have a rooster wld it b a good idea to borrow one or get some fertilised eggs so she can hatch them herself? Or will she snap out of it? She went broody last month but i took her out of the box and she wouldnt go bak unless she was laying an egg and stopped after a day or two but she is really grumpy and gpes straight bak in to the box

 

[hxgumdrop]

She flaps eats drinks and poops once or twice a day but just sits where I place her out of he box the other times shes really grumpy and with her crown all floppy im worried there was something serious wrong

 

[Hollywoodandme]

She sounds broody. I have a 25 week old cochin who went broody....so I gave her some eggs to sit on. I couldn't get her to stay out of the nest box so hatch away.

I agree my cochins do this when broody. They know better than to starve themselves to death

. My hens are broody for around 3-4 weeks however one of mine stayed in the roost for nearly 6 weeks !!!!

 

[Veer67]

She sounds broody to me, I had a hen that would go broody every couple of months but they'll snap out of it when she realizes that the eggs will never hatch unless you want to her to brood some eggs. What kind of breed is your hen? Some chicken breeds have floppier combs than others. A broody hens poop is usually big and stinky.
Here's a video of my broody Buff Orpington:

 

[hxgumdrop]

Shes a light sussex and her crown wasnt so floppy last week. Her poop is bigger than the eggs she lays! But varies but i found a website about how to tell if its healthy poop or not and ot seems fine. Shes just rwally off character. When she was broody before she still laid but shes had 2days off now

 

[cafarmgirl]

She flaps eats drinks and poops once or twice a day but just sits where I place her out of he box the other times shes really grumpy and with her crown all floppy im worried there was something serious wrong

Agree, she sounds broody! As far as whether or not to give her eggs to hatch? Totally up to you as to whether or not you want to deal with it and what you would do with the resulting roosters! And if you want to keep doing that every time she goes broody. She will eventually give it up. Some people put persistent broodies in a wire bottom cage with no bedding, this helps break the broodiness.

 

[hxgumdrop]

I read up about the wire box but seems a little mean hopefully she will just snap out of it as neighbours wont be happy if I end ip with a rooster! Thanks for all thehelp was just worried as shes not taken two days off before and her ccrownis usually fuller