Broody Brahma Hens

The hens went broody. I didn't expect it would happen so soon, but it did. Ruby was the first. She made her own nest in the "wild", outside the coop. She sat on eggs for 21 days, getting up just one time per day to eat, drink, poop and dust bath. She went on to hatch two eggs, but by the time I arrived the chicks were dead.

brahma hens in Puriscal
Not soon after Ruby went broody, Blondie decided it was time for her to do the same. I did not want the potential of a lot of chicks so I was taking the eggs when ever I could. I settled on four eggs for Blondie to sit on. Blackie followed and decided to go broody, however I wouldn't let her sit on any eggs because, honestly, I wasn't prepared for a lot of chicks, nor was I prepared to be the "mother" if I had to step in. I stole Blackie's eggs. She didn't care and sat on an empty nest any way. Other times she decided to help Blondie with the job and would join her in the nest box.

brahma hens in Puriscal
Grey Neck never went broody. She wanted Blondie to incubate her eggs and would lay in her nest. I didn't catch on to this for a few days until I noticed Blondie's clutch was increasing. The above two photos show two and then three hens in one nest box. An egg broke that day inside the nest. After Ruby's two dead chicks I made the final decision I didn't want to bother with chicks at this time. I took the eggs away from Blondie and had a heart to heart discussion with the hens to quit being broody. Oddly enough they listened to me and in the next few days returned to being active birds.

You may be wondering the names of the other two chickens. The other hen is Grey Neck, she never went broody. The rooster's name is simply Rooster.