4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[tweetiepie]

I have had a broody chicken for over 2 months (I have read the posts on broody hens).

 

What I wonder is if the broody chicken could be the reason the other hens are not laying.

 

I got 4 new chickens (all same age) in July after a bad fox attack killed my last ones. 2 started laying immediately, but the other 2 never started. Of the 2 laying ones, one has gone broody and the other flew into the pig field (and never got out). All a bit of a disaster.

 

I have tried everything with the broody one, bar the broody cage. It has a regular cold water spray, is shut out of the nesting box so it has to sleep on the nesting bars to keep it cooler, and I shut it out of the cube during the day so it eats and drinks and runs around. But as soon as I open the cube up, its straight back in for some brooding.

 

So, I'm on one egg a day (from the broody one) and a lot of bother shutting it out all the time.

 

Does anyone have any ideas how I can get my other 2 to lay?

[bellekatz]

I am suprised that your broody hen is laying - they don't usually when they are broody They usually stop when they turn broody and it takes a few weeks for them to get back into the swing of it after they have stopped - are you sure one of your others isn't laying??

[tweetiepie]

I am almost certain its the broody one, but its possible its one of the others. The broody one stopped for ages, but I assumed had started laying about 2 weeks ago.

 

Is it usual for them to be broody so long - I had hoped it would just be 21 days. Am I confusing it by taking the eggs away?

[bellekatz]

No you are not confusing it - the eggs should be taken away as soon as possible so that it doesnt encourage broodiness but this doesnt always work I have had one broody for 8 weeks this summer, and that was her second go! She has finally snapped out of it but isnt quite into laying mode again yet. Short of a broody cage ( which I used three times with her last summer) nothing else works. And she is a hybrid which are supposed to be less prone to going broody All cckens are individuals and they don't always play by the rules. You are doing the right thing locking her out to make sure she gets food and water every days it's up to you whether or not you want to pop her in a broody cage for a few days.This was the only thing that worked for me last year,and I would say that you must have another one laying you are getting a regular egg. Is she well apart from the nest sitting?

[tweetiepie]

Thanks - thats very reassuring. I guess I had better get a broody cage set up though to snap her out of it. Yes, she's fine apart from the nest sitting.

 

Is it possible she is putting the last chicken off laying though? If one of the non broody ones is laying after all, I think the non laying one is probably the one which is moulting everywhere (I thought for a while the broody one was pecking it, but eventually I decided it was just moulting).