What Should I Do About My Second Broody?

[TXmom]

I have a Silkie sitting on 7 eggs, and she's due in the next couple of days. YAY

When she first went broody, I moved her to a Broody House, separate from the coop so she and the babies would be safe and comfortable. She's been setting GREAT.

Well, now I have a young Buff Orp who's decided she's broody (has been acting like this for several days). I decided I would let her sit on 3 EE eggs, so I put her and the eggs in the Broody House with the Silkie. It's large, plenty of room for both. But she's not settling in there. She walked around a lot yesterday and knocked over the food, did a lot of scratching and throwing shavings around, then she sat on the eggs all night. But this morning when I opened the door to feed them, she bolted out the door. She ran to the coop and ate, then jumped back in the old nest box. She had food available in the Broody House, she wasn't starving! In her current state of weirdness, I don't think I trust her in the Broody House with the new babies who could be hatching tomorrow or Saturday.

So...should I just try to "break" her broodiness? Or do I give her eggs in the coop nest box? It's not really a good place to be hatch chicks because it's up off the ground and they could fall and get hurt...also the other hens have a history of messing with broodies...you know, pushing them around so they can lay an egg in that spot, cause that's the BEST place to lay.

Also, the last time we let babies hatch in the coop, 2 of the babies vanished, never to be seen again. Don't want that to happen again!

I'm so torn about what to do...Silly Broodies!!!!

 

[cashdl]

I would give her the eggs in the nest box for now. You have a while for her to settle in. Then maybe next week try moving her again and do it at night. I had a hen that acted just like that and it took me several tries to move her. I finally was succesful a couple of days ago and she is happy where she is at now.


Lanae

 

[Ridgerunner]

My set-up, goals, experience, and management techniques are different from yours (at least we both have chickens) so I cannot tell you what I would do. It is your personal decision. The way I see it I think your options are:

1. Build another broody area for this hen alone. When you move her, leave her locked in so she cannot get out. I don't know how devoted you are to those three specific EE eggs or how much they may have cooled off. I'd suggest leaving her locked in there for at least two days to see if she is going to accept being broody in the new nest or if she is going to break from being broody. If you really want to you can try giving her those three eggs, but I'd be tempted to start over with fresh eggs if she does accept the move. Maybe use those three eggs as "fake" eggs to se if she will accept the move.

2. Break her from being broody.

3. Leave her in the main coop with the other chickens and see how it goes. With your experiences, I'd think this is not a preferred option but I'll mention it. I don't know how high that nest box is, but I personally would not worry about chicks getting down from a nest three or four feet high. There is always the chance they could get hurt, but the way they spread their featherless wings to maintain stability and land on their feet and bottoms, they are not likely to get hurt, especially if you have some litter for them to land on. I'd worry more about the hens fighting to lay there and the broody resisting if that is your history. A lot of the time the broody seems to welcome other hens laying with her, but some violently resist. They are all different.

I also would be cautious about her being in with the broody Silkie during the hatch. Seems like that is going great. I would not complicate the one that is working.

I don't see any other realistic options. Good luck!!!

 

[TXmom]

The nest box is only 2-3 ft off the ground, with several inches of pine shavings under. So I see your point, they probably wouldn't get hurt from a fall. It's really the other chickens I don't trust.

OK, so for now, I put those 3 eggs back under her in her favorite nest box. I have no idea if they will develop since she's been on and off, but they're not particularly valuable (I get 3 blue eggs just about every day)...we'll just see what happens. Maybe next week, if they're developing, I can try to move her to the Broody House at night. I'll just see how things are going with the Silkie babies at that point in time. I'm sure I can split the House in half or something if needed, so they all have their own space (it's 4' x8'). If I end up with any hens from those blue eggs, they should be Olive Eggers...Yay for colorful eggs!

Thanks for the advice!