Sick Chicken?

[walkeasy]

Found one of my EE chicks setting in the nest box yesterday evening. She didn't bother getting up. Found her there again today. Picked her up and felt around for a bind. Couldn't find anything that felt like an egg. Also took a peek at her cloaca and it did not look red. So we picked her up and carried her inside, filled the sink with warm water and set her down in it. She was extremely calm, didn't care to get a way. She did not sit in the water. Took her outside and set her down about 200 feet from the coop and she ran straight there and stopped to get a bug on the way in. I'm pretty sure she went right back to the nest, i will verify in a few mins.

I read that if you put a bound chicken in a tub of warm water she may sit in it. I have never been able to pick her up willingly before.

While she is in the nest she is making a very quite cluck noise over and over.

I have never noticed her being broody before.

What next?

 

[walkeasy]

Yep, right back in the box. Still clucking. This time she seemed to raise her rear at me. I have never had a bound chicken before...

 

[walkeasy]

Still the same..

 

[ChickieG'ma]

How old is she? I think you have a broody on your hands. She may be just trying it on for size or she may get more serious about it.

Gotta love broodies!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

How old is she? I think you have a broody on your hands. She may be just trying it on for size or she may get more serious about it.

Gotta love broodies!

x2

If she is growling at you then she is a broody if she won't get off the nest and won't lay.

If eggbound they act ill. If she isn't acting sick then I'd think broody. Does she walk funny, like a penguin?

 

[walkeasy]

I did catch her out roaming the yard before the sun went down yesterday. So I felt as if we can rule out emergency.

She did appear to want sleep in the nest box, which by the way has no eggs in it as I took them all. When I saw her out in the yard she was still making the low clucking sound. Never really heard her do that for a noticable lenght of time before, I like it and it makes her look cute. She wasnt walking like a penguin.

When we took her out of the box she did not hiss at me. That is what caught me off guard. In fact, I'm still suprised at how easy it was to pick her up, carry her into the house, fill the sink with water and set her in. She didn't even try to get away when I let go of her. I have never been able to catch or touch her in the past. I may try this with other chickens as I will show my cats how they should behave.

What do I need to worry about being broody? I know they sit a lot, don't produce eggs. Is that all? is there health concerns? We get more than enough eggs, so if this chick wants to pause for now, I'm okay with that.


Thanks for your help, nothing like not knowing how to help your bird.

 

[walkeasy]

Found her out Running around this morning with the same ole (new) low cluck.

 

[redhen689]

Yep she's broody. No special care, just let her do her thing. She might stay broody for a month or more. Do you have fertile eggs you can put under her? Not all hens get nasty when broody, All of the broody hens I've had will ruffle up their feathers and give me a little warning sound to leave them alone, but I've only had a couple that really pecked at me when I checked under them for eggs.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Yes when my broody hens walk around they cluck constantly and puff their feathers out like a turkey. Then they let out a LOUD yelp and run around the chicken yard. Then it's back to the nest.

 

[ChickieG'ma]

Yeah, we had two this year. The cochin hen would just do a low growl-purr and puff up but would let us pet her, check the eggs, whatever. The other one, a GLW hen, would puff up to two times her normal size and peck and BITE us. It was lots of fun relocating her. Had to wear gloves to reach under her to get the eggs and to pick her up then again to put the eggs back under her.

We left her pretty much alone for the whole 21 days.

The great thing about broodies is they do it ALL! She will know everything that needs to be done. After the chicks come she will show them what to eat and where to drink and everything else they need to know. It's soooooo cool to watch a hen and chicks. All you have to do is decide which eggs you want her to hatch (I assume you have a roo?) and she will do the rest. Oh, and you may want to arrange it so the other hens can't get in to lay where she is. Our 2nd hen's hatch was almost ruined because a couple of hens kept laying in the nest til she had almost 20 eggs and since I was lax about writing on the hatching eggs we couldn't tell the age of any of them. She had two hatch that were actually hers (they even both look just like her) and when I eggtopsied the others there were chicks that ranged from day 7 to day 19 in them.

Have fun!