What's the longest you've had a chicken disappear?

[gottsegnet]

It started with a young cockerel. He didn't show up at bedtime. Then one of our best laying hens. Then our cat went missing. Fairly sure we were dealing with a predator that decided the edge of our property made good hunting grounds (fox?), we locked down the chickens.

But we were really sad about the hen. (And the cat, of course, but this is a chicken forum.) She was one of our first four, my five year old's pet and just a sweet girl. In fact, that's her in my profile pic.

Five days later, she showed up happy and healthy and looking better than ever. Where on earth she was, I have no idea. But we are soooo happy!

My children were at AWANAs when she showed up, but as soon as my daughter got home she ran down to the hen house to give her a hug.

Now I'm wondering how often that happens.

 

[afinney]

We've had hens go missing for 5-6 days at a time but they were setting....and just the other day we found our turken pullet living under the house and she had been missing for 4 days

 

[gottsegnet]

Cool! I was wondering if she'd gone broody, but the last time we had seen her was at 7PM running with the flock as normal. Seemed like an odd time to go broody, but I don't know. She laid a nice egg this evening, but paid no attention to it.

Still doing the happy dance to have her back!

 

[Judy]

I have a neighbor who says his silkie left for a good 3 weeks, then returned home, followed by a brood of chicks.

 

[Illia]

2 weeks. Had two Crested Polish get lost in the forest for two whole weeks over a year ago, then a neighbor far down the road called up and told us they saw some funky looking chickens in their backyard.

Well, it ended up as my very own Polish girls, and to this day they're still alive and healthy.

 

[dieselgrl48]

26 or so day's.We used to have Jersey Giant's.We let them free range days.We had given One up to fox or Coyote.Then just out of the Blue she showed up in driveway with about 9 peeping fluffy chick's.I dunno where she was hiding all that time with the egg's.But It was So Awesome to see her with those babie's.We have a lot of Building's and stuff so she was probably under one of them which kept her safe. Like one of my OEGB hen's this time.She did really good with her egg's under corncrib in basicaly a dirt bowl under some old wire.Hen's have a natural instinct to keep nest quite.

 

[woodmort]

Quote:
That happens more often than not if there is an area where they can go hide. When I was a kid I found a missing hen with a brood of chicks up behind a bunch of bales in my uncles's hay mow. The poor chicks couldn't get out and had to be rescued.

 

[gottsegnet]

Our cockerel showed up tonight. Maybe they had a little love nest?

That's so cool about the chicks. I would have loved to have her turn up with chicks! I think in future I won't be so quick to write them off, though, when they go missing. We have a chicken killing dog that is allowed out in the morning before the chickens go out and in the evening when they're locked up. When one has gone missing in the past, I've given it 24 hours before letting the dog out again, but maybe that isn't long enough!

 

[lilbirdee]

I was going to do a new post about my missing Speckled Sussex hen, but thought this would be a good place to add my question. I suspect she's gone broody somewhere because after the first night she didn't come in I found her wandering about the yard in the morning. Then for the last 4 nights, no hen and also no sight of her in the day. No sins of attack or abduction either.
so...my question is: she's only 6 months old. Is that old enough to go broody somewhere?

 

[gottsegnet]

I don't know much about the age at which they can go broody, but I've read it is fairly common in the Sussex. Maybe?