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What else can I help you with?
Why does a hen sit in the nest all the time and squawk at you when you try to move her?
The hen is likely broody, which means she is trying to hatch her eggs. She will sit on the nest to keep the eggs warm and may squawk to protect them. It is a natural behavior for hens to be protective of their eggs and offspring.
How do you know if a hen is clucking?
A broody hen is easy to spot. The hen will remain on the nest when the other hens are going about their daily routine. The hen will often be aggressive when you reach in to remove her eggs. If you remove the hen from her clutch of eggs she will often run right back to the nest, protesting loudly. The broody hen will not roost with the other birds but remain on the nest over night.
Does the chicken have to be broody before you put the rooster in?
No. The rooster makes the hen's eggs fertile. From your question, it sounds like you want a hen to hatch some eggs. If so, some breeds or crosses are far more likely to go broody than others. Also, particularly if the chickens are in a pen/run rather than free ranging, a rooster will discourage broodiness rather than encourage it. A rooster also reduces egg production - in both cases its because he chases the hens a little to control them and mate with them, so egg production drops.
How many eggs does a hen lay when she is sitting?
An individual hen will go"broody" and will gather a clutch of eggs to brood. These will not always be her own eggs. She will steal them from other hens by rolling them into the nest she has chosen. Unless the hen is broody she will lay her egg and leave the nest announcing loudly to the rest of the flock what she has accomplished. Hens can go broody whether there is a rooster in the flock or not, so no, not just fertile eggs trigger the brooding instinct.
Can hens go broody without a rooster?
Yes, chickens can start to brood with no rooster present. This is one of the things that farmers look for in their laying flocks. This behavior makes for a good chicken and mother hen, but a poor laying hen. These chickens eat as much as the others and don't lay eggs so they get culled out of (removed from) the laying flocks. These are the birds that wind up in the farmer's wife's cooking pot.
Why does my broody chicken sit on nothing?
When hens are broody they are not 'themselves'. Try taking her off the nest and putting her in a cage, somewhere she is isolated from the other hens and also where there is no nesting box. That always works well for my hens.
Which is better broody hens or incubators?
It really depends on how good a broody the hen is, and the reliability of your incubator and your experience incubating chicks.
Why are your broody hens eyes foaming?
They either have a parasite or they have been fighting.
Who is the best broody hens?
I have Silkie Chickens who are very broody, they are little bantam chickens that look like little cotton balls.
Is a hen less apt to sit on an unfertilized egg?
No. A broody hen is a broody hen and will sit on golf balls once the urge to nest takes her. Hens do not instinctively know if the eggs they are brooding are fertile or not. Hens in a chicken coop without a rooster among the flock will still go broody.
What does brude mean?
Brood means to worry. It originally referred to the behaviour of hens sitting on hens to make them hatch. The behaviour of the hens at this time became "broody"--worried.
Why won't my broody stay on her clutch?
Some hens just aren't built for being broody. Although, if there is continuous disturbance, (ie. noise from the house, other hens trying to lay etc), then this would cause her to leave her clutch.
Will two different hens lay their eggs in the same place?
Most hens have a preference as to where they lay their eggs. If a broody hen takes over the communal nest then the other hens will find a new spot to lay. It is always a good idea in a small flock to provide alternate nesting boxes just for this reason. When one hen goes broody, the other hens do not go off laying. If you are missing eggs, it is quite likely that the brood hen is taking what she can find to her own clutch.
How long will a broody hen sit on eggs?
Broody hens do lay eggs. They actually lay one [1] egg every day or two.
Why hens sit on their eggs if they dont have rooster to fertilize?
Because it is a natural instinct for them to go broody
When you have two broody hens on one nest sharing eggs will they kill the other's chicks when they hatch or would you separate them now before it's too late?
In my experience using Silkie Broody Hens, you do often get two sharing the brooding, and happily share the parenting. I've never had these hens kill chicks, quite the opposite, they are both very protective of them . Of course if you have a new batch of eggs you want to hatch move one broody hen on to them and she will sit. Hope this helps
If there is a rooster in with chooks how do you make the chooks clucky and hatch their eggs?
If you are asking how to make the hens go broody, then there is no surefire way. To encourage broody-ness, you should put fake eggs in her favourite laying box.
