Not sure if Hen is broody? HELP ANY ADVICE IS WELCOME!!!😊

[Cynthia12]

I was told leghorn are very uncommon to go broody as well so I was so confused is there anything I need to make sure I do besides food and water constantly, I currently put her on chick starter as of today as well for the extra nutrients. Should I keep her separated and when and how do I move them back? This is a first for both me and Foghorn ( the mama from above)

I had one go broody! She was a great mom!!

 

[frasereve]

Hand feed your broody girl some juicy, fatty, high calorie & protein treats like sardines or scrambled egg or hard boiled egg yolks while she's brooding as broody hens typically lose too much weight (condition). These daily treats will also encourage her to trust you more in the long run too.

Definitely have been trying to give her treats ( her favorite is watermelon) but she won’t take them from my hand, only eats them if I set them about 2 feet away where her food and fresh water is, ( I give her 1 cup of scrambled eggs as well as a small cup maybe 1/4 c of mealworms and or earthworms, and and 1/3 cup of 16- layer scratch, and she gets some handfuls fruits like blueberries and raspberries, I also have a cup and a half of chick starter mixed in as well) my non broodies get this as well but without any chickstarter and an all flock feed as well as a 1/4c of oyster shells and baked chicken egg shells. EVERY ONE GETS EGGS !! I’ve tried to do what I’ve seen others do online but I’m not sure if I’m going over board or not enough! PLEASE LET ME KNKW IF I CAN IMPROVE IT AT ALL OR NEED TO CHANGE AN AMOUNT!!!!!!!!! ( side note my ducks get the all flock feed as well as B3 Vitamins with their water is that okay?)

 

[frasereve]

It is! You have a special case. Where did you get her from? Hatchery leghorns don't because it has been bred out of them. Breeder leghorns may be different. Sounds like you have it under control! Let her at least see her flock, otherwise they may forget her. I had that happen. The hen was bullied and had to go through the integration proccess. At day 18, 19, or 20, I would block her off completely. That way any chicks that hatch will only be messesed with by mom. Made that mistake with my first broody too. Chick got out from under Mom, as they do, and got pecked in the head. Mom did not protect it. Probably because she was young, about the same age as your pullet. So like Perris said, she may not be a great mom. And you should candle the eggs on day 5 or 7 and check for viability. Then take the non viable eggs out. A lot of people candle again on day 10 - 14. When I had a broody, I think I candled day 3, 5, 7, 10, 14, and 18. I know I candle that often with incubator eggs. I have a bad case of OCD. (Obsessive Candling Disorder)

I posted above the diet I have everyone on including foghorn, and just the flock please let me know what you think? Or if I should change it somehow!!

 

[Ebony Rose]

A balanced diet for chickens is 90% or more chicken feed (from your feed store) and no more than 10% of all those extras.

Mealworms are super duper high in fat. Tip the scale. High in fat. Perfect treat for a brooding hen.

As for your broody hen, she'll not be eating as much for the 3 weeks that she's brooding, so bulking her up a bit with extras is a good idea, but I'd cut way back on the extras for the rest of your flock. Fat hens ultimately have difficulty laying eggs, often end up with fatty liver disease, (list goes on), with an ultimate result of untimely death.

 

[frasereve]

A balanced diet for chickens is 90% or more chicken feed (from your feed store) and no more than 10% of all those extras.

Mealworms are super duper high in fat. Tip the scale. High in fat. Perfect treat for a brooding hen.

As for your broody hen, she'll not be eating as much for the 3 weeks that she's brooding, so bulking her up a bit with extras is a good idea, but I'd cut way back on the extras for the rest of your flock. Fat hens ultimately have difficulty laying eggs, often end up with fatty liver disease, (list goes on), with an ultimate result of untimely death.

Okay great thank you very much that’s really helpful!!! I was wondering if freezing an ice cube with watermelon or mealworms for a broody is an okay hot day treat, I’m not sure if the ice is too hard for them or if they will get hurt?

 

[cluckingheck]

She’s from a hatchery actually ( Meyers hatchery to be exact and that is where I’ve gotten all of my chickens including 7 other pullets about 4 months younger than her I have so many pics if anyone wants to see) !!!! I have her in a 4 by 2 by 2 rabbit hutch on my upper porch so I could watch her more closely, should I move her down stairs even with her already sitting or just wait? Also can I just put it beside their run so they can still see each other or should she be inside the coop sectioned off? another thing is that most of her flock mates 4 out of 7 are actually leaving this week to go to a new home so she will be the 2nd oldest I was hoping this might moved her up in the pecking order for her and the babies? But I will also be adding the 7 pullets hopefully to the older hens, do you have many problems with pullets hurting chicks or mostly older hens ( my 7 pullets don’t actually realize they are chickens as they were raised by my farm dog and have more in common with him than the hens)

I don’t know if it’s their stock, but almost ALL of my broodies just this year ( all their first time ) are my Meyer hens. Only one isn’t from Meyer’s ( she’s a return broody, though, that I got from TSC. A barred rock ), so that’s 8 broodies since APRIL! And two of them I broke but they went back to brooding after a week or two so technically 10 broodies if I want to count them again.

 

[Perris]

Is it common for more than one hen to go broody at the same time because I now have a barred rock trying to Sit on infertile eggs and keeps stealing eggs, and I believe she’s a mean broody because she won’t let me touch her at all just screams and pecks anytime anyone including the other hens are near?

indeed it is. They can trigger one another, or they're independently sensing that it's the right time of year for having babies

 

[frasereve]

I don’t know if it’s their stock, but almost ALL of my broodies just this year ( all their first time ) are my Meyer hens. Only one isn’t from Meyer’s ( she’s a return broody, though, that I got from TSC. A barred rock ), so that’s 8 broodies since APRIL! And two of them I broke but they went back to brooding after a week or two so technically 10 broodies if I want to count them again.

I know hatchery birds are bred to take out broodiness but oh my when I saw she was broody I immediately freaked out (super excited) and got eggs!! Well another hen just went broody yesterday and is still broody today, I was hoping it was a mood because I have had no idea how to “break” her out of it…….. but I had a question, I have 3 hens that normally share their coop and run…… and well 2 out of the 3 hens are broody now!!! I already moved one into a separate pen and the other broody is going to be moved tomorrow so she can’t get picked at or anything because she picked the one favorite box out of 6 to go broody in!! but I hate to leave just one lonely hen in there any chance she’ll become broody do you think (she’s a 1 and 1/2 yr old sapphire gem locally laid and raised so not a hatchery bird). And if all three hens are broody and I let all of them hatch can they all go in the coop or do they all have to be separated!!!??? i understand every bird is different and anything is a guess but just looking for some clues or advice

 

[Perris]

I know hatchery birds are bred to take out broodiness but oh my when I saw she was broody I immediately freaked out (super excited) and got eggs!! Well another hen just went broody yesterday and is still broody today, I was hoping it was a mood because I have had no idea how to “break” her out of it…….. but I had a question, I have 3 hens that normally share their coop and run…… and well 2 out of the 3 hens are broody now!!! I already moved one into a separate pen and the other broody is going to be moved tomorrow so she can’t get picked at or anything because she picked the one favorite box out of 6 to go broody in!! but I hate to leave just one lonely hen in there any chance she’ll become broody do you think (she’s a 1 and 1/2 yr old sapphire gem locally laid and raised so not a hatchery bird). And if all three hens are broody and I let all of them hatch can they all go in the coop or do they all have to be separated!!!??? i understand every bird is different and anything is a guess but just looking for some clues or advice

read the articles I linked to in post above; they will guide you well.

 

[frasereve]

indeed it is. They can trigger one another, or they're independently sensing that it's the right time of year for having babies

Should I put both broody hens in a separate pen? And if all there become broody do they all need to be separated or can they go together since they will all be hatching babies (within a week or two of each other) Itachi ( the non broody sapphire gem) has been stealing eggs out from under the other broody in there but she doesn’t sit on them just pulls the fake eggs out n puts them in the box next to the broody hen? Anyone know what she’s doing?