The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: Litl_Deb on July 30, 2010, 09:49:35 pm
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I have a hen sitting on a pile of shavings and hay at the back of the chicken coop, she has been on and off so I have been taking the eggs most days, not worrying. Anyway, today my second son saw an incident of another greedy hen chucking her off the nest and nicking her egg - then taking it outside for the others to eat !! not good. I decided to take away the ground level nest to discourage it, so at bed time tonight I went and tried to shoo her off.
Well she wouldn't budge, so no more ado, I grabbed the garden fork and prepared to lift the nest from under her - she just sat there.
There was me standing in the hen house with a chicken sitting on a nest on the end of the garden fork!!!
I guess this means she is getting keener on sitting then...
I took todays eggs and put them under her with the one she had left, and put her into the nest box where she should be safe from the greedy one.
I hope her new-found determination pays off Bless Her :chook: :)
Is this the ultimate test for the broody hen ?
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;D ;D ;D
:chook:
:chook:
:chook:
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That's a brilliant post Annie.
I keep hoping that the chook on the bottom will catch up lol :)
Sorry, only had my first chooks for a week so can't help with Broody Hen.
Ian
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It's easy, Ian - just highlight something and then click on the moving M symbol on the top row. Trouble is it can be too tempting to use and posts can get overloaded and difficult to read.
Deb, did you mark the eggs so you know which ones they are in case other hens come and lay beside her?
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Nah, the next moring she hopped off and abandoned them - looks like she failed the ultimate test !! ::)