Nest box is FULL of eggs, but hens refuse to go broody

[NickB79]

Hello all. I have 2 Plymouth Rock hens, 3 Buff Orphington hens, and a Plymouth Rock rooster. They have laid approximately 25 eggs over the past week, yet they refuse to become broody. Since these are breeds recommended for their good mothering behavior, I'm stumped over why they won't start sitting. I have been placing individual eggs from the 6 nest boxes into 3 on the advice of a coworker who used to raise chickens under the theory that seeing more eggs in one place will jump-start their mothering instinct. Was this a mistake, or do I just have to be more patient?

I have read of locking the mother hen in her nest box to force her to brood; is this a good idea or unnecessarily cruel?

Also, the nest boxes are mounted on the walls about 2 ft off the ground. Should I place some nesting sites (wooden box, low pots filled with straw, etc) on the ground instead?

Finally, since I don't know how often they've been attending the nests, are these eggs dead by now? Nighttime temps have been falling into the 40's lately, with 30's predicted for this week.

Thanks!

 

[Lurch1]

You can't force a hen to go broody. You can try to coax her to lay in a dark area of the hen house and se how that goes. As for the temp, my understanding was not below 40. I store my eggs between 50 and 60.

 

[carriehelene]

Hello Nick, and

You can't force a hen to become broody, it's all hormones, controlled by nature. They will go broody when their bodies tell them too, and not before.

 

[trilyn]

What the other 2 have said!

 

[Ariel301]

They may never go broody. I've never had Orphingtons, but I have never had a Plymouth Rock go broody out of about 75 I have owned. A friend of mine who has both white and barred Rocks does not have any broodies either. Birds that have been bred lately for high and efficient egg production have a tendency to not go broody, because the broody instinct causes them to quit laying eggs while they try to raise chicks for a month or more...which can be annoying to a producer who just wants eggs--so they are selectively bred for not brooding. If you want a good reliable broody, get a few Silkies or some bantams like Old English Game and Cochin, they make great mothers. But again, it's on their own timing, not yours...and leaving eggs to pile up in the nest does not really make them broody. They will choose to brood regardless of what they have to sit on. My broody sat stubbornly on a golf ball for days without moving until I got some fertile eggs under her, and she almost took my arm off when I tried to take her golf ball away!

 

[CityClucks]

I've also had Orpingtons go broody, but never a Plymouth Rock. I've never thought of broodiness as something you could force - I suggest the "more patience" option. Good luck!