Hen stopped laying because of a broody hen?

[LemonZW98]

Hi I have two hens, and they are around 9 months old. I got them as a pair (they were my very first chickens)These two are best friends. They follow each other around, eat together, sleep side by side etc. Recently, one of them had gotten broody. She's inside the rabbit cage now. The other one has completely stopped laying the day her friend got broody. I've checked her hip bones. They've gotten narrower. Does anyone know why this is happening, and is there anyway I can get her to start laying again? thanks

 

[aayto1]

Hens lay off protein and it is a common cause of chickens going off the lay. I had no eggs from 12 chickens in 8 months and couldn't work out why until I fed them plenty of cracked corn in their diet (protein) and they all started laying again. If your chickens has no mate in the pen maybe she is not eating cause she is lonely or maybe she is just not on the right diet. Hope this helps

 

[Nicole01]

I'm always getting broody hens and I gather my eggs several times a day! Right now I have 2 broodies I can not break. One has been sitting in the nest for a good 3 months. I did put an egg under her, but I think it might be dead inside. I don't know if I see a ring around the egg or not. I put a second egg and its not fertile. I don't have the rooster anymore, I re homed him. My other broody tends to go broody all the time. She's a year old and this is her 4th-5th time broody. She's broody for a lesser time.

I haven't done the cage thing yet to break their cycle. I just lost 3 to coyotes and I have 2 broodies! My egg count is very low. They don't lay during broody time since they need all the eggs to hatch at the same time. If they kept laying eggs while sitting on a clutch, there'd be many dead or half cooked chicks. My broodies do get plenty of protein. I kick them off the next during treat time everyday and I always feed extra protein in their snacks.

Broodiness drives me crazy.:/. I don't normally hatch with broodies anyway. I have an incubator since I'd rather hand raise them.

 

[aayto1]

I have 3 that sit at the same time every year. It takes 21 days exactly for the eggs to hatch and trust me hatching and keeping track of your eggs is no easy business. I've been hatching for 10 years now and I still get it wrong but I find if you take however many eggs you want a broody to sit on them and mark them with the date you put them under it is easy to find the ones that don't have a date and pull them out. The hens are pretty good at keeping track of temperature and knowing when to get off or stay on. I have had to learn to let them handle it. Interfere too many time and all chicks end up dead. Hens won't lay when they are broody. Their body transfers the food into storage cause they eat less.

Drives me crazy too