How early can a hen go broody?

[tinychicky]

it's entirly possible she is broody. i had a silkie X who laid only one egg then immedietly went broody

to check under her wear a long sleeved coat or swetshirt or something and a glove. actually i can reach right under my tame girls with no pecking at all, but do take precautions if you're worried. those broody bites can hurt! good luck with your hatch

 

[debid]

If you have a crowing rooster, your eggs might be fertile even if you haven't witnessed any action. You could always mark a couple from your favorite hens, stick them under her, and see what happens in 3 weeks.

 

[lswatson111304]

I only have 1 hen laying and I eat her eggs so I check them right away and haven't noticed any bullseyes. I even checked the egg I took from her last night and it wasn't fertile. I ended up having to drop a different egg in water to warm it up to her body temp and put it back under her. I didn't want to make her mad giving her an ice cold fridge egg! LOL