She's laying eggs again? and other stuff

[cashela]

So my year old (more like a year and so many months) BBW laid about 15 eggs in the spring and went broody and stopped laying. I took her eggs away because we didn't have a tom at the time. She would even sit on the chicken eggs. My one chicken wasn't broody and would lay an egg and take off out of the coop and any time I let them free range the chicken was out and the turkey was in. I got a Narragansett tom sometime in April I think. He's done a lot of strutting and gobbling but I've never seen the two mate. Mostly the hen just beats him up(he doesn't look beat up but there have been times when she has cornered him and gone at him other times they happily sun themselves together). Well about a week ago my bbw has started laying eggs again. They seem smaller then the eggs that she laid in the spring and the past two days I have seen two broken eggs in the coop, the eggs have really soft shells. The bbw is just laying eggs and leaving them. Now my chicken has gone broody and is sitting on the turkey eggs.

So my first question is, why did she stop laying for a time and start again? (still feel so new to turkeys even though I've owned them for over a year now) Why has my chicken suddenly gone broody? Do you think the tom may have bred my bbw? If so should I let the chicken set on the eggs for a while to see what happens? I don't have an incubator but if nature wants to hatch some eggs, so be it. Why are the eggs soft? I feed them all layer pellets.

 

[corancher]

Get some oyster shell and give it to your chickens and turkey. That should take care of the soft shells.

As far as your turkey starting to lay, and then stopping and then starting again. She stopped laying when she went broody which is normal. Once she wasn't broody, then she started laying. I don't think any of us know what makes a bird go broody. It seems like when I want a broody bird then I don't have any then let me start pre selling eggs and the whole bunch goes broody.

It is likely that your tom bred your hen. I guess I would like the hen set on the turkey eggs and see what happens. Good luck.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

Ours will lay in the spring and again in the fall. it's common if something happens to the first batch of eggs, the hen will take a beak and lay another clutch. With a white turkey you can see if they are mating, look for dirt or mud on the hens back, the tom stands on the hen to mate. The first couple eggs are usually soft since the egg train is starting back up. Some extra calcium helps as does feeding her egg shells.Crush them up and put in the feed.

Steve

 

[cashela]

Thanks guys. I was all confused

I will let the chicken set on the eggs and see what happens

If I get babies I will be so excited