Hey, it sounds like you have two broody chickens
If they're spending alot of time in the nest box, walking around all puffed up and clucking alot. Then it usually means that they're broody. If they're walking around alot, it could be because they're being disturbed from sitting or they're just starting to think about going broody. Broody hens are often very aggressive to cockerels and other hens, I don't believe that the loss of their feathers has anything to do with their behavior.
Hope this has helped
Hey, it sounds like you have two broody chickens
If they're spending alot of time in the nest box, walking around all puffed up and clucking alot. Then it usually means that they're broody. If they're walking around alot, it could be because they're being disturbed from sitting or they're just starting to think about going broody. Broody hens are often very aggressive to cockerels and other hens, I don't believe that the loss of their feathers has anything to do with their behavior.
Hope this has helped
It sounds like they are broody, other chickens usually find them a bit annoying especially when they chose to go broody in the favorite nesting boxes. Do you have a couple of different nesting boxes or are the Orloffs trying to go broody where your other hens normally lay? I would leave your Orloffs a couple of days and if they're still set on being broody, isolate them from the other chickens and put them in a pen and next box of their own. If you don't want to incubate your own eggs, and your unsure on whether the Orloffs will sit well. Just buy in some cheap fertile hatching eggs and put them underneath them
It sounds like they are broody, other chickens usually find them a bit annoying especially when they chose to go broody in the favorite nesting boxes. Do you have a couple of different nesting boxes or are the Orloffs trying to go broody where your other hens normally lay? I would leave your Orloffs a couple of days and if they're still set on being broody, isolate them from the other chickens and put them in a pen and next box of their own. If you don't want to incubate your own eggs, and your unsure on whether the Orloffs will sit well. Just buy in some cheap fertile hatching eggs and put them underneath them
.. nor anymore seperating space
Thank you! The hens are actually not even sitting, they aren't laying and are puffing themselves up, but aren't sitting at all really. I remove eggs several times a day too..Oh well
As you cant have chicks, you may as well try and get them to go un-broody. Because as you've found out they don't lay eggs while they're broody and can be a bit of a nuisance >.<
To get them un -broody keep removing them from the nest box, you need to make sure that they are in a place where they can't sit on some nice hay/straw/sawdust and go broody. it sounds mean but when I have broodies I don't want I usually remove them from the group and put them in a metal dog crate with a mesh floor. This means that the air comes up underneath them and cools them down. Making the broody go un-broody. this may take a couple of days so make sure they have food and water available to them. If you want to speed up the process you can dunk their bellies in cool water a couple of times an hour and then place them back in the crate. This makes them cool down quicker.
Broody hens may sort themselves out, but they will loose alot of weight because they're sitting all the time and this means they won't lay eggs for agessss.
Hope this has helped, god luck sorting you hens out
