My hens have started acting territorial and broody

[Heather n Gray]

Hi all, I have a small flock: just three hens, all just over a year old and all have been great layers until recently. Two of my hens have taken to competing for the nestig boxes and acting broody on small piles of (often stollen) eggs. The first time it happened, it was just one hen sitting for nine eggs for three days. As the others laid, she would scoop them u der her. Now the two are competing, sitting on each other's heads, pushing each other out etc. Prior to the broody like behaviour, they laid an average of one egg every one to two days each. Now only my hen who is not trying to dominate the nests is laying, and not as often as before. They will spend days on end in the nests if I let them. Food and water consumption are down. I have started moving them all out of the coop and into the run, to try to get them to stop as well as to try to get them to eat regularily again. What else can I try? The only recent changes has been the addition of the run. They all have free access to it, it is attached to the coop and it more than triples their space. The expansion happened about 6/8 weeks ago and these new behaviours started about two weeks ago. Has this happened to anyone else?

 

[GitaBooks]

My birds all decided it was a good time to go broody as well. I even have a broody red star! You can either break them up (using a wire cage is easiest) as otherwise they may lose too much weight. You could also let them set, setting up some comfortable nests and getting them fertile eggs. You could chose a rare breed if you want to sell the chicks instead of keep them.

Best of luck!

My broody red star, Pearl.