My Girl Macaron: broody, skinny, negative 9 degrees.

[Eggcessive]

I would get her on a higher protein feed such as flock raiser or chick grower, and supplement with a small amount of egg, tuna, and liver on alternate days. Keep her on the poultry vitamins to help her appetite. A probiotic or a tsp of plain greek yogurt daily would help.

She probably got very weak with a month of sitting on eggs, in addtion to sitting on and raising a brood earlier in the year. She also could be starting a molt, which I have seen a hen do just after sitting on a clutch of eggs one Feb. Hopefully, she isn’t ill, but I would look her over for lice and mites, which sometimes become a problem with a broody hen. Worm her with Valbazen or SafeGuard, and if she could come inside for a couple of days, just for observation, it might help to know if the cold is getting to her, or something else is happening. If you have to leave her inside the coop, perhaps place her in a dog crate with her own food and water with some deep bedding to get into. You can wrap a tarp around part of her crate to prevent drafts with ventilation. at the top.

 

[staceyj]

So many good suggestions here.
I know exactly the exhausted look you’re describing.

If you have the time and energy now and are willing to invest it before your baby comes, my opinion is that there’s a lot to be said for a week long indoor princess vacation in a dog crate with a stuffed animal, and yummy food.

It’s amazing what a week or even several days can do for conditioning once the stress of being picked on is eliminated and they can eat in peace.

This is just my opinion, and I realize I’m mushy-hearted, and plenty of people would disagree, but I’ve to used this approach and was very happy with the results.

A day or so of “look no touch” and she was reintegrated successfully.