Semi-broody Orps- tips

[servant_of_fluffs]

I have two 5-6 year old White Orpington hens named Buffy and Bumpy. When I introduce 1-2 month old human-raised chicks to the flock they act broody and follow the chicks around and broody growl at some of the other hens when they go near them until they are 3-4 months old. The chicks honestly seem kind of annoyed by this behaviour lol (the chicks do cuddle with them at night, though) However, they have never gone broody on a nest before. Both of them like sleeping in nest boxes, but more in a "I don't like the perches" way. They have never acted aggressive to chicks or other hens. Both of them have broody pooped even without being on a nest. Now I'm wondering whether they were actually broody and just weren't setting because I was collecting the eggs. Do you think I could "convince" them to go broody by seperating them from the other hens and slowly adding eggs to a nest? I would probably just separate Bumpy, unless Buffy went broody on her own. Thanks for reading! I would love to make their broody dreams come true

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Do you think I could "convince" them to go broody by seperating them from the other hens and slowly adding eggs to a nest?

You can’t convince a hen to go broody from what I understand. But as spring hits they are more likely to

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

You can’t convince a hen to go broody from what I understand. But as spring hits they are more likely to

I more of meant separate her into an area where she is more likely to go broody. I don't have the best nest boxes for brooding right now From what I've read what triggers a hen to go broody is the build up of eggs in a nesting site, so if I slowly built up the eggs in her own quiet area she might be like "yes, I shall be broody!" Also, if I'm right about the two Orps being constantly broody, then it should be pretty easy lol (hopefully)

 

[jwcarlson]

Maybe you could set up a milk crate (or some other box) with a handful of fake eggs in it (so you don't have to waste eggs or worry about them going bad). If they haven't gone broody in 5-6 years, I can't imagine they're likely to. But it wouldn't be a huge investment to give it a shot. Orpingtons are, in my experience, just really sweet chickens. Last year I had one cover chicks that a frizzle mom abandoned and at least my buff Orpingtons I have always called "aunts". They might not have been the broody chicken, but they're all very tolerant of any chicks that might be around.

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

Maybe you could set up a milk crate (or some other box) with a handful of fake eggs in it (so you don't have to waste eggs or worry about them going bad). If they haven't gone broody in 5-6 years, I can't imagine they're likely to. But it wouldn't be a huge investment to give it a shot. Orpingtons are, in my experience, just really sweet chickens. Last year I had one cover chicks that a frizzle mom abandoned and at least my buff Orpingtons I have always called "aunts". They might not have been the broody chicken, but they're all very tolerant of any chicks that might be around.

Awwww yeah that's how they both are. They love the older chicks, but the older chicks aren't as receptive to their "momming" behaviour. I'm just now realizing that they have been acting like they were at least starting to be broody for a while in the summers. At the very least I can introduce some more incubator-raised 1 month olds to the flock and have the Orps be aunties again.

 

[fluffycrow]

Before committing to a nest, hens go through a few phases, where their body adjusts for the brooding ahead.
Pre-brooding behaviour takes a lot of forms (and sometimes goes totally unnoticed). In the wild, it would start when the first egg is laid. For the domestic chicken, that lays a significant number of eggs a year, it’s a bit different. You’re right, if a hen is ever to go broody (some never will), it will happen once she starts noticing eggs accumulating in her nest. Letting her make a clutch naturally is probably the best way to go about it.
Chickens are rather smart, and most hens don’t pick a nest site randomly (this is especially true for senior and/or experienced broodies). After the number of eggs in the nest is found to be sufficient for the hen (for some that number is one, others, closer to 12) her body will start preparing for the task. She is likely to consume more food, to build up a healthy weight/fat which she will burn in the coming weeks. She might start pulling feathers from under her to create a brood patch, she might spend more time in the nest each day after laying an egg, and finally, she might start clucking a few days before fully committing.

The behaviour of your hens sounds promising, but factoring in their age, it might just be coincidental (unless you were actively stopping them from fully committing all these years, by taking the eggs quite regularly).
No one can say for sure what they will do. Since you’re up for it, it’s certainly worth a try. Let them build their own clutches in nests of their choice (if none are suitable, a milk crate like jwcarlson mentioned should work great). Moving them probably won’t help, since they’d be losing the stability of their flock and rooster(s)

 

[Ridgerunner]

I've had plenty of hens go broody while collecting the eggs every day so no build-up. I had a hen hide a nest and hatch 18 chicks. I never found the nest so I don't know how many eggs she started with. People like to make rules but you just don't get guarantees with living animals. They are going to do what they re going to do, not what we want them to do.

Broodiness can be bred into or bred out of a flock. Many of our chickens have had most broodiness bred out of them, they are more for production. Leghorns for example. Leghorns hardly ever go broody but you can occasionally read on here about leghorn going broody. Some breeds like Silkies or Orpington have a reputation for going broody often yet my Buff Orps never did. You do not get guarantees with living animals. I've had hens go broody and hatch and raise chicks. I've saved replacements from eggs laid by a hen that went broody so the genetics are in my flock.

I've read many posts on here on how to make a hen go broody. I read the one about eggs accumulating so I added one fake egg each day to a nest to see what happened. I tried this three different times with fake eggs and tried it once with marked real hen eggs. Once I got to a dozen I left them for about two weeks. One time I had a hen go broody, but that was on a different nest so I don't think that counts.

On the other hand one time my chicken sitter did not collect the eggs when I went on vacation so they built up. When I got back two different hens were acting broody on two different nests. When I removed all of the eggs both stopped acting broody but I suspect if I had left the eggs at least one of them would have gone full fledged broody. I can't guarantee that but I think it.

I see nothing wrong with adding fake eggs to a nest and building them up. See if one takes the bait. What do you have to lose by chasing your dream? If she goes broody, give her real fertile eggs.

My test if a broody is broody enough to trust with eggs is that she has to spend two consecutive nights on the nest instead of sleeping on the roost as usual. Since yours sleep in the nests I'm not sure how you tell how broody they are.

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

I've had plenty of hens go broody while collecting the eggs every day so no build-up. I had a hen hide a nest and hatch 18 chicks. I never found the nest so I don't know how many eggs she started with. People like to make rules but you just don't get guarantees with living animals. They are going to do what they re going to do, not what we want them to do.

Broodiness can be bred into or bred out of a flock. Many of our chickens have had most broodiness bred out of them, they are more for production. Leghorns for example. Leghorns hardly ever go broody but you can occasionally read on here about leghorn going broody. Some breeds like Silkies or Orpington have a reputation for going broody often yet my Buff Orps never did. You do not get guarantees with living animals. I've had hens go broody and hatch and raise chicks. I've saved replacements from eggs laid by a hen that went broody so the genetics are in my flock.

I've read many posts on here on how to make a hen go broody. I read the one about eggs accumulating so I added one fake egg each day to a nest to see what happened. I tried this three different times with fake eggs and tried it once with marked real hen eggs. Once I got to a dozen I left them for about two weeks. One time I had a hen go broody, but that was on a different nest so I don't think that counts.

On the other hand one time my chicken sitter did not collect the eggs when I went on vacation so they built up. When I got back two different hens were acting broody on two different nests. When I removed all of the eggs both stopped acting broody but I suspect if I had left the eggs at least one of them would have gone full fledged broody. I can't guarantee that but I think it.

I see nothing wrong with adding fake eggs to a nest and building them up. See if one takes the bait. What do you have to lose by chasing your dream? If she goes broody, give her real fertile eggs.

My test if a broody is broody enough to trust with eggs is that she has to spend two consecutive nights on the nest instead of sleeping on the roost as usual. Since yours sleep in the nests I'm not sure how you tell how broody they are.

Thank you for your thoughts! It probably has to be the nest they are laying in (not just a random one), like with your chicken sitter situation? It would be so interesting to do a study on this!! One day..... hehehheheh. I would have an excuse to have more "children"!

I'll watch for my Orps laying in the late spring/summer (with a game cam lol) They aren't acting broody right now, probably because I had to take down their favored nestbox. One of my other girls was making suspicious dinosaur growl noises, though, so I guess they don't care much. However it is still winter-ish, so probably not the best decision for her.

No cons to trying, at the very least! In the spring I'll update this thread with how it went.

 

[fluffycrow]

My test if a broody is broody enough to trust with eggs is that she has to spend two consecutive nights on the nest instead of sleeping on the roost as usual. Since yours sleep in the nests I'm not sure how you tell how broody they are.

I would imagine spending all day in the nest for the same amount of time would suffice. Two days of regular day brooding and expected broody behaviour/sounds (with or without a daily outing for food, water, stretching and self care) along with two nights should be enough.

Thank you for your thoughts! It probably has to be the nest they are laying in (not just a random one)

Not necessarily, though it is easier. If you know that the nest they are laying in isn’t suitable for brooding, then place fake or real eggs in another nest, and remove the eggs from their favourite nest as soon as you see them. Hopefully they will make the switch.

I'll watch for my Orps laying in the late spring/summer (with a game cam lol) They aren't acting broody right now, probably because I had to take down their favored nestbox. One of my other girls was making suspicious dinosaur growl noises, though, so I guess they don't care much. However it is still winter-ish, so probably not the best decision for her.

No cons to trying, at the very least! In the spring I'll update this thread with how it went.

Don’t concern yourself too much about proper time of year (if you’re ready for chicks now). If a hen has decided she can brood, I choose to trust her. This of course varies by location (and I certainly don’t live in a cold climate), but hens can provide enough body heat to keep chicks safe in remarkable conditions