Chicken shack Posted September 16, 2012 Share Posted September 16, 2012 (edited) I have been keeping chickens now for more that 2 years but I do not know the difference between a broody chicken or a sick one. One of my ex-batts stayed in the all day today. I picked her up and checked her over and she appeared ok. My question is. What dose a broody look like I rescued her last October. I don't think she lays anymore infact none of my girls are laying much. Like me they are all a bit past it. Edited September 17, 2012 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadietoo Posted September 16, 2012 Share Posted September 16, 2012 Broodys will stay in the nest box for a long time although they are not laying and they flatten themselves into as big a circle of chicken as they can make! If you turf them out of the next box they will do their damndest to get back in as soon possible..They make a deep clucking noise... .. It's unlikely I would have thought for an ex-batt to be broody, as they seem not to have the genes... so a poorly exbat will be hunched with tail down, with little interest in what's going on around them, perhaps little interest in food...... it's a difficult one, but in my experience sick girls don't hang around in the cube unless they think they need to lay...I had to take one of mine to the vets recently with a lash that was for the want of a better word "stuck"....once removed she was immediately better... Can't really add anything else, I'm sure someone with more experience will be along shortly.x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coppers Posted September 17, 2012 Share Posted September 17, 2012 Lupin, my persistent broody, really screams at me, puffs herself up so she looks huge, and tries to peck me when I turf her out of the nest box. She tells the whole neighbourhood what I have done by bokking loudly for quite a while. She then clucks constantly, still puffed up, as she goes around her business in a sort of huffy complaining way. She then tries, as mentioned, to get back into the nest box. That is when she is sin binned for 3 days and nights . I would say your little hen is possibly poorly I am afraid ,if she is quiet and not resisting being removed from the nest box. Possibly has softie on way which when passed would make her feel better. Hopefully that is the case. x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramble Posted September 17, 2012 Share Posted September 17, 2012 I'm no expert at all on this, but do remember panicing that I had a poorly chuck who turned out to be broody . None of my ex-batts have ever gone broody, but a couple of my other hybrids play at being broody from time to time and get VERY bad tempered with it (you can really see the dinosaur in them when you try to turf a broody out of the nest box!!!) There is a health check thread in the chicken clinic section - it's well worth doing that and maybe give her some nutridrops or similar, in case she's a bit under the weather. Good luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken shack Posted September 17, 2012 Author Share Posted September 17, 2012 Thank you all for your replys. She passed away during the night. However she has had 11 months of freedom. I now also know how a broody behaves. She looked fine with nothing stuck and no nasty bugs, I just think it was her time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollyripkim Posted September 17, 2012 Share Posted September 17, 2012 Oh what a shame, sorry to hear that, but at least she didn't suffer and had a lovely free time. Sending hugs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superkitty Posted September 17, 2012 Share Posted September 17, 2012 Sorry to hear that..but well done for giving her a good run of freedom and a happy life! At least it sounds like she went peacefully Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
