One year old Hen is egg bound.............I think.

[Chickenman623]

She's been sitting on the nest for two days now...........and obviously has no intention of leaving. It looks as if she's trying to lay and egg..............her "egg layer" is puckering in and out. We lubricated with Olive oil the out outside and a little bit of the inside. I'm wondering if a syringe with just a little Olive oil in it could be inserted and lubricate a little further than my wife's tiny finger was able to do would be helpful? I understand we are in a fight with the clock on this one.

 

[Alexandra Runner]

You might try taking her inside and giving her a warm Epson salt bath.

 

[Eggcessive]

How is she this am? Is she passing any poop? Does she seem broody or wanting to hatch eggs? Test her by putting an egg in front of her to see if she pulls it under her. Is she growling at you when you come near? Has she pulled out her chest feathers (broody patch) to come in contact with eggs? If not to all of those questions, I would give her a human calcium tablet (calcium citrate with D is good, but other calcium or Tums around 300 mg is good.) Rather than soaking her in warm water, I would place her on a warm towel out of the cold to lay an egg. Let us know what you find out and how she is? Offer some water and food up to her beak.

 

[Chickenman623]

I'll preface this with "I have White Faux eggs in the nests to get the "girls" to start laying eggs."

Last evening she would drink water out of a cup and eat out of my hand (while on the nest). Took her out of the nest and told her to go "be a chicken". She did. She drank copious amounts of water and ate some food from the feed and then went out in the yard for a little while to peck and scratch.....but went right back to the nest afterwards.

Went out this morning and she was still on the nest. She was talking her little "murmur". Took her out of the nest and put her on the ground. She immediately went out to the yard to scratch and peck. She's plenty alert and active. She had one of the Faux Eggs nice and warm. So I took all the eggs out of the nests. I think she's broody. But try as she might, she'll never hatch that Faux Egg. I'll just keep making her be a chicken and I think she will be fine. We are headed to church but I'll keep an eye on her this afternoon.

Thanks for all the responses. Never had one go broody before so this was worrisome.

Thanks for all the comments and I hope all of you and yours have a Blessed Easter. HE HAS RISEN !

 

[Chickenman623]

Update:

I've had to "evict" her 3 times today. She's bound and determined to be a mother. There were two eggs that someone else laid today and she was "keeping them warm". Every time I've taken her off the nest she's complained severely. Oh well, maybe she'll eventually get the message she's beating her Beak against the wall.

 

[Chickenman623]

It's been 5 times she's been evicted today. She's out in the yard just scratchin' and eatin' away........just like all the others. When she tires she'll go right back in and get in a nest. Driving me nuts. Hope my will is stronger than hers. I'm afraid she's going to tell the others they can just sit in a nest and not produce eggs but I'll keep feeding and watering. Beginning to think she's a squatter!!!!!

 

[Chickenman623]

I evicted her 6 times before I went to the gym this morning.............and have done it a couple of times after my return. I locked up the coop so she couldn't get in............but it was blocking the others from laying eggs which made for a pretty raucous bunch. So I let them in and, of course, she's back on the nest taking care of eggs that don't exist. I've been reading everything I can find and have been watching YouTube "University" videos. Easiest way I've found is to get her some fertile eggs to hatch. The person on the video said as soon as she hatches some eggs, her temp will go back down and her broodiness will go away.

So WHERE do I find fertile eggs for sale?????

 

[Eggcessive]

I would break her from being broody if you don’t need or want chicks. To break her, she needs to be removed from the nest box and placed in a pen or wire dog crate with food and water. It she have no bedding, so that she doesn’t brood there. A perch or roost bar is also good if there is room. Keep her in the pen for 5 days. Most of mine will get broody again later after being broken.

Hatching eggs if you want to hatch chicks, have to be collected and placed under her all at the same time. That way they will hatch at the same time. I date mine, and put an X on them, so I know if she is turning them. They take about 21 days give or take a day to hatch. I would not let her stay broody too long before you place eggs under her, but with a new broody, you may want to make sure that she is serious about it. And that takes a couple of days.

 

[Chickenman623]

My biggest problem is I live in the woods and the only safe place for chickens at night is the run and the coop. The run is 6' wide and about 15' long. I'd have to partition off the end of it to make a pen. but she wouldn't be protected from the rain there. It has a dirt floor and I'm pretty sure she'd dig a nest there to brood even though there isn't any bedding. It would be nice if I had a larger dog pen to make her an area inside my shop where she'd have a concrete floor, but that isn't available. I always have to end up with a problem child.

 

[Eggcessive]

The dog pen would be fine inside the run if she can stay in there at night, and no predator can get in. My broody pen has a dirt floor. I have tried to set them on the roost at night with the others, but until they break from the broody spell, they just keep heading to the nest box unless you block it off at night. If you let them be broody for a long time without hatching eggs or breaking them, they can become very weak and starved.