missing hen where do they go ??

[saildog]

I lost a hen for 2 days, assumed she was dead. She came back today but was only around for a few hours. What are the possibilities? The only one I know is she has her own nest and is sitting on eggs out there ? Could it be something else? She is a buff orpington about 7 months old .

 

[Quyen Le]

It's normal for her to hide her clutch of eggs. Search for her nest. Relocate her to a safe place using a box at night. good luck.

 

[sumi]

If she's hiding a nest somewhere you can watch her and see where she goes, but be careful. If she sees you watching she will not go to the nest. I've had this experience with sneaky broodies. they are not stupid! Pretend to be busy with something and keep a casual eye on her. Hopefully she'll show you where she goes.

 

[saildog]

Oh lordy I walked thru the woods looking this morning but no luck. There are acres of forest around me!! I guess if she reappears today I will try to stalk her from a distance as you suggest. Will she just reappear once the chicks hatch otherwise? I do have roosters but that is no guarantee the eggs are fertile and will hatch though.

 

[sumi]

Hens are very good at hiding themselves! Trust me, I walked right past my one broody many times without noticing her! She will come out when she's hatched chicks. Hopefully she'll be O.K. out there, wherever she is. But keep an eye out and don't let her see you follow her. She will not show you her nest!

 

[XavCas]

The story of how I actual got chickens has to do with this. We were clipping trees in our yard and we put the pile of branches and limbs and everything in the front for the garbage men to take. For some reason, week after week, they never took the branches. During this time, a broody hen found her way to our yard and made a nest and laid eggs in there, 8 to be exact. I had no idea she was in there. I walked past that every single day; after I got home from school, to take out trash, or when we left to go places. Sure enough, 21 days later, I walked home from school and heard peeping. I looked around and there was a chick stuck under the recycling bin.! I took the chick and ran inside to show my mom. I went outside to see where this little guy came from and the mom came out and she had 5 more babies. I was shocked.! I just got a mom and 6 chicks... all for free.! And thats how I came to have chickens. and I love them SOOOO much.<3

 

[sumi]

Wow, that's a wonderful way to get started with chickens!

 

[mmjisawesome]

I have a chicken that did the same thing! She was just going to her nest deep in the bushes I later found out! The first time she left we thought a predator had attacked her but she came running the next morning!! When I fond the nest there was 11 eggs because I wasnt able to ather them on time!! haha