Broody hen with roll away egg nest box?

[fl_deb]

Has anyone who uses an egg roll away type nest box have their hens go broody?

 

[sourland]

Broodiness is caused by hormonal changes not egg laying site; therefore, I would assume that hens might go broody in such a nest box if they were from a broody variety.

 

[gryeyes]

Yes, I have a rollaway nest box in the Main Coop, and the hen that has recently hatched eggs went broody in a different nest box, which I set inside the coop because there was a waiting line for the double-seater rollaway nest box. She had been laying in the rollaway, but chose the covered kitty litter box on the floor of the coop in the corner to go broody in.... Made it easy to care for her and her chicks when the eggs hatched!

 

[fl_deb]

Thank you for your responses.


Linda,

I guess what I am getting at is that I have read so many state, that their hens went broody AFTER seeing a collection of eggs starting in a nest, that I was looking to see if anyone using ONLY a rollaway egg type nest still had hens go broody.

If I understand your post, she went broody using a second nesting area where eggs were accumulating?

 

[gryeyes]

Some hens go broody without there being ANY eggs at all - it is totally an hormonal process.

Eggs do not accumulate around here, although I do have a golf ball in most all of the nest boxes (except for the rollaway nests). Each of my two pullets who went broody did it with just one egg (although Shirley laid her egg next to a golf ball). Buffy was already broody when she stole eggs from the nest box next to the one she was monopolizing. Shirley let other hens lay in her cat litter box when she was out on her constitutional breaks.

Buffy was my first and I didn't think to mark eggs until she was into her broody period for five days. I discovered Shirley the first day, but my "rule" to make sure a girl is REALLY broody is to wait to see if she stays in the nest for 2 nights. By then, she had two eggs of her own and two from other pullets. I marked those and pulled any new eggs out every day afterwards.

 

[fl_deb]

Thanks again Everyone!

At least now I know that using a roll away egg nest box won't be eliminating the possibilities of one of my hens going broody someday.