She's STARVING!!!!

[chickensducks&agoose]

I tried it. she didn't really eat, just sort of wiped it around with her beak... but she drank a little water. then walked back and demanded that I let her back into her nest... stinky chicken... and WOW, gross poo. Holy mackerel, that was disgusting. there's poo on one of the eggs... i scooped as much of the poo off of the egg while scooping the rest of the nest.. is it going to make the egg sick?

 

[chickensducks&agoose]

Oh, she also decided to try to hatch the PB&J... had it tucked in with the eggs.... does this mean she is crazy?

 

[dancingbear]

chickensducks&agoose :

Oh, she also decided to try to hatch the PB&J... had it tucked in with the eggs.... does this mean she is crazy?

No, it means you are.

You tucked a PB&J sandwich in with the eggs. She'll brood anything in her nest, a lot of them do that. To her, object in nest=egg. (PB&J? Part of the chicken's natural diet?)

Maybe you should just take her off the nest once a day, with food and water available, but not feed her in the nest. Eating in the nest leads to pooping in the nest, which can lead to contamination of the eggs in the nest, poopy feathers, etc., not a healthy nest situation. The eggs can get infected and the chicks die.

It's also better for the hen to get out of the nest and move around some, every day. You're discouraging that by stuffing food into the nest. You might also be causing her to be reluctant to get off the nest because you're stressing her. What you see as trying to help, she sees as harassment, and may think her eggs are in danger from you, the intruder.

Do you have a video cam you could set up? She's probably getting off the nest when she really needs to, or would be if you just left her alone. You'd never know unless you're watching from daylight to dusk, though. It's rare for a hen to not get off the nest for a daily break, while brooding.

I know you're trying to help, but I think you're just making it worse. She's a chicken! She has chicken instincts! Give her a chance to use them!

All I do with mine is check under them once a day to check for broken eggs, (clean the nest if there are any broken, so they don't start to decay and kill all the other eggs) and remove any new eggs the other hens may have laid. I mark and date eggs when I let the hen have them, when I'm sure she's broody.​