I locked her in a cat carrier with 2 infertile eggs yesterday
long story short I knew she was interested anyway because she was tending to the eggs during laying more & more, I.E "cuddling" & talking to the eggs, pushing any nearby eggs underneath her & puffing herself up & spreading her wings with her chest puffed out to cover any eggs she couldn't get under her.
The other hens behave completely different & can't seem to put distance between themselves & eggs fast enough.
She is a natural broody, a cochin / pekin bantam & I hatched her so I could rely on her broody & mothering instincts to hatch more egglayers & meatbirds on a small scale. That way I get more chickens & she gets to do what she is bred for best.
So I thought what the hell & put 2 infertile eggs beneath her. She laid a fertile egg yesterday morning which I removed because I plan to add them all at once when I know she won't "jump ship" as it were. I kept checking her frequently & let her out twice to eat / drink, but she did a massive broody poop in the box which I cleaned out while she ate (give her due, she did kick up a fuss to be let out, but I didn't get there quick enough).
It took all of an hour to make her drop broody with this method yesterday morning!
When can I leave the door to her cat carrier open so she can help herself when she feels like it?
And will she lay today since she went broody yesterday?
How much exercise does she need & for how long can she be off the nest for?
I kind of figured since cooling a hens body temperature cools the broody hormones, so I encouraged her to sit to warm her underneath to encourage her hormones, although she really didn't take much encouragement at all. But I still had to put her back on the nest yesterday because she ate / drank & then hung around by the eggs. As soon as she was on them again she settled down.
Her 2 shop bought eggs she is incubating are very warm & so is her underneath.
And all of my eggs are confirmed fertile, I have a beautiful rooster who does that.
I plan to leave her in the coop since I don't see much of a reason to upset the flock by removing her. Usually a sharp warning sound followed by a sharp, light smack if the chicken persists has been enough to stop adult chickens attacking brooder chicks & I'm sure the hen will do the same thing in her own way.
This is her first clutch however & I am on hand 24/7 to make sure things are ok.
Is there anything I should watch for in her behavior? And can I combat any potential weight loss she may have by handfeeding occasionally? I've read that can be a bad idea since she may not get off the nest.....
Her welfare is important to me & she is highly valuable to me if she is a good brooder & mother, so I will wait for advice from experienced keepers before anything else.
Sorry I have so many questions, just so excited......
The other hens behave completely different & can't seem to put distance between themselves & eggs fast enough.
She is a natural broody, a cochin / pekin bantam & I hatched her so I could rely on her broody & mothering instincts to hatch more egglayers & meatbirds on a small scale. That way I get more chickens & she gets to do what she is bred for best.
So I thought what the hell & put 2 infertile eggs beneath her. She laid a fertile egg yesterday morning which I removed because I plan to add them all at once when I know she won't "jump ship" as it were. I kept checking her frequently & let her out twice to eat / drink, but she did a massive broody poop in the box which I cleaned out while she ate (give her due, she did kick up a fuss to be let out, but I didn't get there quick enough).
It took all of an hour to make her drop broody with this method yesterday morning!
When can I leave the door to her cat carrier open so she can help herself when she feels like it?
And will she lay today since she went broody yesterday?
How much exercise does she need & for how long can she be off the nest for?
I kind of figured since cooling a hens body temperature cools the broody hormones, so I encouraged her to sit to warm her underneath to encourage her hormones, although she really didn't take much encouragement at all. But I still had to put her back on the nest yesterday because she ate / drank & then hung around by the eggs. As soon as she was on them again she settled down.
Her 2 shop bought eggs she is incubating are very warm & so is her underneath.
And all of my eggs are confirmed fertile, I have a beautiful rooster who does that.
I plan to leave her in the coop since I don't see much of a reason to upset the flock by removing her. Usually a sharp warning sound followed by a sharp, light smack if the chicken persists has been enough to stop adult chickens attacking brooder chicks & I'm sure the hen will do the same thing in her own way.
This is her first clutch however & I am on hand 24/7 to make sure things are ok.
Is there anything I should watch for in her behavior? And can I combat any potential weight loss she may have by handfeeding occasionally? I've read that can be a bad idea since she may not get off the nest.....
Her welfare is important to me & she is highly valuable to me if she is a good brooder & mother, so I will wait for advice from experienced keepers before anything else.
Sorry I have so many questions, just so excited......
