It's contagious!

[Tala]

Quote:
Broody is another name for "a setting hen"
it means that the hen is setting on the eggs to keep them warm enough to incubate them
When a hen is broody they stop laying eggs and also they only leave the nest once or twice a day to eat/drink/poop so it is hard on their bodies.
If the eggs hatch in 3 weeks the hen will get back to health soon, but if there is no rooster she will wither away waiting on infertile eggs to hatch. If you want eggs to eat, or if your eggs are infertile and you don't get her some fertile ones to hatch --- that is why most people "break" their broody hens and also why it has been bred out of most "high-production" breeds.

 

[TurkeyMountainChickens]

Well, I do have ten hens - so I'm OK for breakfast. But the other folks who often get eggs from us may have to wait.

I'm just a bit worried because the broodies are occupying ALL of the nest boxes, and the other hens don't seem to like the alternatives I put out.

Last night, I marked all of the egg the broodies were setting on. Today, I went through their eggs - and found six new ones. So they must be letting the remaining hens share the nest boxes? It's not like chickens can carry eggs up into a nest box. That would be something to see!