Stag's gone Broody!??

[Fraoch21]

Has anyone ever heard of that or experienced it? Is it normal? Our bronze turkey stag has gone broody, we collect the eggs from under him every day, it normally a mixture of turkey eggs and duck eggs but its getting harder to get them since hes starting to peck and hiss when we go near him. I just tried to get a duck egg from under him but i got him off it a bit and then backed off when he went to peck me and he nudged the egg back underneath him. Surely the stags don't go broody? We've had them for a few years now and he's never gone broody before?

Also would he hatch eggs, could i use him as i would a broody hen?

 

[NYREDS]

not at all uncommon. I have a Narragansett Tom that's about to hatch a clutch of eggs. A hen joins him on the nest occasionally but he has set w/o interruption. Not the first time I've had one do this. You can't use him as a broody hen, he's a tom but he will hatch eggs for you.

 

[Fraoch21]

Wow, that is really odd....is it something they've developed or is it something that helped them in the wild do you know? Very helpful though, I can set eggs and i wouldnt be missing a laying bird!

 

[ivan3]

Yep, the toms will share/usurp nest, on occasion (RP tom horning in on Slate's nest (stayed two weeks and moved on):