I know! it is just too cold and I can't seem to leave enough food for them - they are eating pretty heavily, a combo of needing it and boredom I think.
Minnesota!
- Thread starter foxhollow
- Start date
Lala....mine are eating alot now too. I think they need those calories to burn. Their eating strategy is different though, in a -10 or -15 coop they'll jump down for the grain in the morning... just a bit-- they won't finish it off, get something to drink (I usually am bringing down warm water) and then jump back up and fluff up and warm up. I think they must do this all day on those days. Up and down on the roosts. But the food disappears.
Is your boy's comb starting to contract down and turn more black? This will be a rough winter on you and him...but next winter will be better. Roger hasn't had one problem this year. Thank goodness.... better knock on wood here ***
Is your boy's comb starting to contract down and turn more black? This will be a rough winter on you and him...but next winter will be better. Roger hasn't had one problem this year. Thank goodness.... better knock on wood here ***
I have a California White hen not quite 1 year old. She will be 1 in March. She has been sitting on her nest for 2 weeks. No eggs just sitting on her nest. Two or 3 times a day we get her off the nest and she chatters in disgust. We hand feed her and then she drinks water like it is going out of style. She acts like she is more thirsty then hungry. If we would not get her off the nest she would not eat. Once she is off the nest she poops hugh amounts. In the nest she does not poop. What is wrong with her? We are concerned but very confused.
The fact it is a CW surprises me that she'd be acting broody, but that is it. Can I assume you were getting eggs from her in late summer? If you have a place to do it, put her in a wire ottom cage to break her and have water and food available for her in it.
The birds tend to be more thirsty this time of year if they don't have water available all the time. I am not able to have unfrozen water for all my pens at this time and what all of them want most is water when I go out, so that's what they get first.
As for the huge poop, that is part of the broody cycle, when they do get off the nest, they clean themselves out, then go back and set again. Her disposition toward being disturbed goes along with broody sea as well.
The birds tend to be more thirsty this time of year if they don't have water available all the time. I am not able to have unfrozen water for all my pens at this time and what all of them want most is water when I go out, so that's what they get first.
As for the huge poop, that is part of the broody cycle, when they do get off the nest, they clean themselves out, then go back and set again. Her disposition toward being disturbed goes along with broody sea as well.
I have noticed just a few minutes ago she has pulled all her under belly feathers out. Has a hen ever starved to death because she was broody? As to answer your question about when our hens started laying eggs, they started late July.
It's common for them to rid themselves of their breast feathers to provide moisture to the incubating eggs. It can be quite dramatic looking when you flip them over to take a look. But they seem to get covered up on their chest when they are standing and are able to keep warm. I believe broodiness is a cycle and it will break on it's own when chicks hatch. But if you are pulling the eggs from her, as winter isn't always a good time for brooding chicks with a broody hen, then break her of the cycle-- i'ts a good thing to do. As I think they tend to waste a little not eating like they normally do. --It takes its toll physically, yes. I always offer lots of treats to my broody when she's in broody jail, some exercise, by catching up with the free range flock for a few minutes,--which usually involves peeling off a nest shortly after, and I do broody jail it in my garage where I can keep a white light on her all night long-- I think this latter retriggers the egg laying portion of her cycle and kicks her brain into a new mission. Depending on what you want to do with her...it can be such a neat thing...I would love to let a broody work her magic for me one spring or it can be kind of a pain. So far mine has only been broody late summer or fall.
Not good timing for chicks with my set up. Either way I find the hens so adorable in their possessed states and we often give extra love and attention to her until we can get her redirected.
A hen pulls her under feathers out when she's broody. She does it so that her skin can directly touch the eggs she is brooding to warm them. The feathers also add to the nest.
Usually a broody hen gets off of her nest once a day to eat, drink, and poop.
just curious, how many times a day do youu switch out water?
I gave up trying to change out the waterers. I now have a heated dog bowl for them to have water at all times. I did stand a couple of bricks on end so there was not enough room for them to step in it and then freeze. It needs to be cleaned daily, but so far so good. I did have a bit of a surprise this afternoon. One of my HRIR laid her first egg, less than 6 months old, not too bad for a heritage RIR.
what a nice surprise on a cold winter day!
Yes, the heated dog bowls work but are also a poopy mess to clean when they think it is a foot bath or a roost.
I do chores once per day. I will likely start upping that to twice once the laying begins. I am working on my heated nipple waterers that will hold more and have plenty with just one time a day for refilling.
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