Buffy Doodle Goes Broody (again)

The Best Eggers
Certain breeds of chickens are better egg layers than others.  There are a number of great laying breeds out there and it's often a toss-up as to which are really the best. Many breeds share similar ancestral backgrounds since they are often bred with the same desired results in mind, whether it be for large size or for dependable egg-laying.  Definitely always in the top however, are the Orpingtons; classified as a heavy, dual-purpose breed they are also among the tamest and calmest, whether they be Buff Orpingtons, Gold Laced Orpingtons or Black Australorps.  One thing that occurs when you keep breeds that are especially known for good laying, however is a phenomenon called 'brooding'.  Yet another chicken term used to described human behavior as well (amazing how many of those there are when you start to take note).

She Wants to Be a Momma
Beatrice laid a late-afternoon egg on Monday.  I got distracted with other things and forgot to pull it.  Normally this isn't a big deal and you can remove it the next day, this time however it seemed to trigger Buffy's maternal instinct and the next morning she did not come down to leave the coop with the others; and by the time I got around to pulling the forgotten egg, there were two more for a total of three eggs under Miss Buffy Doodle.  They were nice and warm!

A broody hen simply wants to incubate eggs; it doesn't matter to her if they are fertilized or not, nor does it matter if they are even hers.  She doesn't want to leave the nesting box once it starts, not even to perch at night or eat and drink; she gets cranky toward anyone or anything that comes near her while she is on this mission (unless it's to lay another egg in the nest), puffing her feathers up and making threatening noises.  Normally they will only be broody for about 21 days, which is the natural gestation period, but not our Buffy.  She has been broody for up to 2 months and there's not much to do about it as it is a natural hormonal compulsion.

The before shot - Buffy when she is not brooding

After - yes, this is the same chicken Buffy, once she has started brooding.  She is headed back up to continue her nest sitting after being gently, but forcibly removed from the nest to eat and drink

A hen in the midst of brooding stops laying during this time and will often gather the eggs of the other girls to put under her, in order to increase the size of her clutch.  It is recommended that the eggs are still removed on a regular basis to discourage a more lengthy brooding period.  I don't find that this necessarily helps make it shorter, but since our eggs are obviously not fertilized (with the absence of a rooster) we don't want them to spoil anyway.

Loss of Appetite
Broody hens don't want to leave the nest for anything, as I mentioned before; this includes eating food and drinking water which can result in poor health especially in hot weather such as we've been having here lately, so you want to pull them out of the nest at least a couple of times a day during this phase.  Set them by their food and water to encourage eating and drinking.  I like to give a broody hen a special treat at this time to ease the irritation they obviously experience with such rudeness as making them leave the nest; I don't know if it really does help ease the irritation, but I go there anyway.  Keep an eye on her comb which will let you know if she is properly hydrated.  You want to see the comb standing up tall and with bright color.  If it gets dull in color, starts to shrink or look floppy - the hen needs to drink more water; and persistence on your part, pulling her from the nest and placing her next to the water will hopefully pay off.
 

Chicken Little on the nest for the purpose of laying an egg

Buffy on the nest for the purpose of brooding - she is doing her very best to appear threatening

Coop Drama
Chicken Little has not been amused that her favorite nest has been constantly occupied by Buffy for the past few days.  She will stand at the top of the duck board and cuss, and cuss!  Buffy must have gotten the message though, because she is actually brooding on a different nest today - poor girl can't get a break!  None of the other girls seem too worried about which nest they use to lay - just Chicken Little, and she will get after anyone who happens to be in 'her nest' when it comes time to lay her egg.  It will be interesting however, to see where the babies sleep tonight, since they have been sleeping in the box Buffy has now moved to; they are still too small for the instinct to perch at night.  Never a dull moment.

Beatrice (right) laying an egg (luckily after Chicken Little was through) and Buffy brooding in the new locale

A Good Adoptive Mom
It is said that hens with a propensity toward broodiness will also make the best adoptive moms to new baby chicks if you want to increase the size of your flock; it should be noted, however, that special provisions should be made to increase the odds for success with that endeavor; such as a special place where she won't be subject to the peer pressure of the pecking order from the other girls, who might not be quite so thrilled with a bunch of pesky, little intruders.

We decided not to go this route when we added to our flock this time around, since we don't really have ready the facilities to separate them completely outside.  Part of me wishes we would have been able to, especially now since Buffy is obviously feeling maternal again.  I've been told that my husband's father had much success with this and his Rhode Island Reds (another top egg-laying breed).  We have decided that Buffy would definitely be a good candidate for this job if we want to try it in the future - she gets the prize for going broody more often than the others.  I think the babies must sense this in her as they have always gotten closer to her than any of the others in 'The Bossy Posse'.

But for now, she'll just have to pretend until the urge naturally subsides.  We'll keep pulling her down a few times a day so she doesn't get dehydrated, and look forward to the day she stays below and starts moving around the yard again with the others, instead of going straight back up the duck board to sit on the nest all day and night.

I would love to hear from any of you who have chickens and your experiences with brooding hens or adoptive hen mommas; etc.