Wanting to Sleep In Nesting Box - First Time Broody?

[Spicegirls4]

Hi There!
I have a 1.5 year old barred rock who has been acting strange but not doing all of the things I usually read about in broody hens. She's never been broody before. She started wanting to sleep in her nesting box three nights ago. I was able to pick her up (twice) and she slept on her roosting bar with her sister. Last night, slept on the roosting bar.
Tonight, she started on her roosting bar and went down to the nesting box. I put her back up on the roosting bar three times and then I just let her stay in the nesting box. She wasn't trying to peck me when I picked her up and really she didn't make much noise at all or fight. She just let me pick her up and move her no struggle. It was pretty dark in the coop at that time - not sure if that matters. They have pretty big coop that I can walk around in and things have been fine for around 5 months or so if not more in there. I don't think it's a mites issue. She's otherwise eating and drinking. During the day, she was only in the nesting box for like an hour?
Is this broodiness? Does it seem like she's just not committing? I'm still a fairly new chicken mom and I get very freaked out any time any little thing changes with them thank you for your time

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Hi There!
I have a 1.5 year old barred rock who has been acting strange but not doing all of the things I usually read about in broody hens. She's never been broody before. She started wanting to sleep in her nesting box three nights ago. I was able to pick her up (twice) and she slept on her roosting bar with her sister. Last night, slept on the roosting bar.
Tonight, she started on her roosting bar and went down to the nesting box. I put her back up on the roosting bar three times and then I just let her stay in the nesting box. She wasn't trying to peck me when I picked her up and really she didn't make much noise at all or fight. She just let me pick her up and move her no struggle. It was pretty dark in the coop at that time - not sure if that matters. They have pretty big coop that I can walk around in and things have been fine for around 5 months or so if not more in there. I don't think it's a mites issue. She's otherwise eating and drinking. During the day, she was only in the nesting box for like an hour?
Is this broodiness? Does it seem like she's just not committing? I'm still a fairly new chicken mom and I get very freaked out any time any little thing changes with them thank you for your time

She might be starting.

Do you want her to go broody? - raise fertilized eggs, etc. Do you have enough nest boxes if she commandeers one for multiple weeks?

If you don’t want her to go broody, do you have something like a wire dog crate, no solid floor, where you can add a perch, and food and water, and maybe a fan on her belly to turn off the hormonal storm?

I have a BR who has been broody for a week, and although she’s been terrorizing the rest of the flock, she doesn’t peck at me or bite, etc., when I handle her. I finally put her in broody jail today, and it’s killing me, but I don’t have the option for her to hatch or raise chicks, and she was really disrupting the rest of the flock.

 

[wrathsfarm]

She's not broody yet but it is a possible sign she might be getting ready to. I would check her for mites/lice and also wonder if she might be going thru a soft molt and wants to be alone away from the flock. I wouldn't worry too much just yet and let her sleep where she wants. If she goes broody then you can decide to set eggs or break her.

 

[rosemarythyme]

So far it doesn't really sound like broodiness. Has she begun molting? Does she get picked on by any of the other birds? Is she showing any sign of lethargy or feeling off?

 

[Spicegirls4]

She might be starting.

Do you want her to go broody? - raise fertilized eggs, etc. Do you have enough nest boxes if she commandeers one for multiple weeks?

If you don’t want her to go broody, do you have something like a wire dog crate, no solid floor, where you can add a perch, and food and water, and maybe a fan on her belly to turn off the hormonal storm?

I have a BR who has been broody for a week, and although she’s been terrorizing the rest of the flock, she doesn’t peck at me or bite, etc., when I handle her. I finally put her in broody jail today, and it’s killing me, but I don’t have the option for her to hatch or raise chicks, and she was really disrupting the rest of the flock.

Thank you for your response! I don't want her to, no, it's just her and her sister but I have four pullets who are right around laying age who are about to start to live with them in the big girl run (they've been in quarantine out of sight). I can only have 6 in my county and I'm also scared of chicke (and accidental roosters) I do feel bad about the poor girl not being able to become a mom.
I do have a good sized crate that I can put her in if worse comes to worst. It's good to know that yours isn't aggressive when she's broody I've always read people talking about how they become evil when they're broody and assumed that was everyone!

 

[Spicegirls4]

So far it doesn't really sound like broodiness. Has she begun molting? Does she get picked on by any of the other birds? Is she showing any sign of lethargy or feeling off?

Thank you for your response! I haven't seen many more feathers than what's out of the ordinary just a few here and there from time to time. She's never had a big molt - her sister had her first big one a few months back. She only has one sister (four pullets moving in soon) but they've been best friends like how they always are doing everything together. She doesn't seem off in any other way and isn't lethargic

 

[Spicegirls4]

She's not broody yet but it is a possible sign she might be getting ready to. I would check her for mites/lice and also wonder if she might be going thru a soft molt and wants to be alone away from the flock. I wouldn't worry too much just yet and let her sleep where she wants. If she goes broody then you can decide to set eggs or break her.

Thank you for your response! I'll check her for them tomorrow night. I'll keep the soft molt in mind and look out, thank you!!!