Mama hen inconsiderate pooping

[Dinosaur Village Keeper]

Mama hen seems to love her babies so much. Weird thing is she poops anywhere. The day after I gave her the babies, she pooped a huge broody poop in the nest and stayed there with it for about half a day until I realized what that was in her nest! She could have moved anywhere away from it. When she isn’t in the nest, she just poops while sitting down, creeps a few inches forward, and calls the babies under her. She doesn’t even attempt to go out of the cage when I leave the door open for her. I always have to shoo her and the babies out of the way to scoop out the foul smelling poop. I am worried that the babies are going to get in it. So far they all look clean and adorable though. They are 5 days old.

My other broody mama would run as fast as she could when I opened the cage so she could run out and poop. She never once pooped in the caged area. Anyone else have a carefree pooping broody?

 

[sourland]

Put the feed and water further away so that she has to move to eat and drink. In my experience keeping feed close close to the nest generally results in fouled nests.

 

[Dinosaur Village Keeper]

Put the feed and water further away so that she has to move to eat and drink. In my experience keeping feed close close to the nest generally results in fouled nests.

If you look at the picture, her nest is in the far left corner. Her food and water is about 5 feet away. She walks her babies over to the food and water in the morning where she sits the entire day and poops once or twice. At night she walks the babies back to the corner and she doesn’t poop at night.