Hen won't come out of nesting box. Concerned that she is sick.

[hrsuperstar]

Hello! I am a very new chicken owner and have had two hens for about 8 months. They are laying and usually very active. I have a coop in my backyard and allow them to roam freely during the day to dig stretch. Recently one of my hens won't come out of the coop. At first I though that I just kept looking for her while she was laying but now it has been two days and everytime I open the coop door she just stays in the nesting box. I took her out of the box to give her a once over, look for any injuries etc. but she looked physically fine. I even took her out of the box to assess her gait and she was fine but walked right back into the coop and into her nesting box. She is even still producing eggs in there. I am not sure if she is eating or drinking because I have not had the chance to watch her that closely but I am very concerned. Is this something chickens do or is she ill?

 

[shawthorne44]

Broody?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Does she make busy clucking noises when you remove her? I agree I would think she's broody or going broody if she's still laying.

 

[hrsuperstar]

I just looked up brooding and it sounds exactly like what she is doing! I am now wondering if I should try to break this broodiness and how. I will have to do a bit a research. Thank you guys so much. The newbie has lots to learn.

 

[Patinas]

From what I've learned recently, you do want to break her broody behavior sooner vs. later. The only reason you want a broody hen is if you're trying to hatch chicks.

I had my first broody hen experience recently and for two days I kept her out of the coop so she couldn't get to the nest box and at night, I would go in and remove her from the box and put her on the roost.

If that doesn't work, the best advice I got was from @aart to put her in a cage elevated off the floor. He has posts on here with pictures. The point is to get air underneath them so they aren't warm and cozy.

Broody hens don't eat or drink much so their health takes a hit because they can and do sit on a nest for weeks.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

Sounds broody. I wouldn't let a girl sit this young. So I personally would break her.

And if you don't have a rooster, then you could always adopt her some feed store chicks the next time she goes broody, which is very likely.

I've done the elevated wire bottom cage, and I hate it plus it doesn't break my girls any faster than locking them in an open bottom cage/run where they can't return to their nest. They still pace and gripe. Completely individual as to how long it takes. Some are only a few day and other have been much more determined. I do return them to the wire bottom KENNEL () for the evening so I can lock them in the coop where it's safe.

Other girls may sneak their eggs under her. But my gals do often lay at least the first day they are broody.

Glad she isn't ill! Good luck.

 

[aart]

If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, best to break her broodiness promptly.
My experience went like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest, I put her in a wire dog crate with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop with fed and water

I let her out a couple times a day(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two.

Feed and water added after pic was taken.