Broody or ill :-( ? Please help

[saltyseadog]

My favourite girl is behaving oddly at the moment. For the past three days I have had to turf her off the nest repeatedly - she is now sitting in the cube on the roost bars looking rather sullen. She is eating and drinking, but spends most of the time in the house, and showed no interest in free ranging last night (v.odd as she is my boldest girl).

She was wormed with Flubenvet last week, and was also dusted with mite powder (haven't seen any mites), so I don't think parasites are the cause. Her comb still seems pinky, and her eyes look bright.

I'm hoping that it's the warm weather that has sent her broody. She did lay yesterday.

Any ideas? I want to take her to the vets if she's ill.

Blubbs is back in the box (since mid afternoon actually, when she'd exited the 'spa' and re-entered the nestbox to assume the evil pancake position).

The others have been given a strict talking to!

DAY 2

Doris will be on parole from 1000h onwards. Her Probation Officer has given her a stern warning - any visits to the scene of the broody crime and she'll be straight back in her cell.

Go Salty! Look for any attempts to tunnel out.

Blubby is at large. On inspection, her broody cage contained no scary broody poo, just lots of 'normal' ones. She's been mooching with the girls all morning, but has had a similar warning as Dore.

Well Dore seems back to her indomitable self, so fingers crossed that no further trips to the cooler are required.

It is lovely to see them all roaming together - I've missed having Dore on the scene .

I hope Blubby is behaving herself too.

All seems to be well - just waiting forthe weather to warm up again ...
They'll be moulting next!

Bugger.

Guess who's back in the cage?

Oh dear, back to the sin bin...

Nooooooooooo! She is one determined evil pancake.

Dore is still (fortunately) pootling about her stuff with the other ladies - little does she know that she is under close surveillance from my bedroom window. One strike and it's straight back to the cooler.

So she was let out again on probation today and I reckon she's been in the nest box all day. She's currently locked out so she can eat and drink, but is going on solitary again ...

Dunk her bottom in a bucket of icy cold water!

I laughed so much at this thread, have a persistent broody, always the same one. She gets three days in the slammer/cat cage too!

Two broody buffs currently in the slammer. Not at all happy!!!

Well, having just hosed down and disenfected the summerhouse of broody poo (and removed the slammer), what did I spy but only three chickens in the run!? G has now assumed the evil pancake position. Gah.

Please tell me this doesn't last allllll summer?

She's really persistent this year. It only took 24hrs last time to sort her. I reckon I'll have it cracked and then go on my hols so that she can assault the

And she did a huge broody poo on the grass. It is like the monolith from 2001.

at monolith from 2001

She's out and about Kept her in the broody house all night and she's been out in the garden with the girls all day. Fingers crossed - it's set to warm up I think ...

Just had the call from Wernlas to say that her 3 new friends are almost ready to pick up

G is repeatedly nutting the door to the Cube (have shut it to keep them all out of the nesting boxes). I am not feeling positive that she's going to snap out of it anytime soon (or that she's particularly bright ).

Oooh - just had a look at the Wernlas site . How exciting! Only 3???!! What will your running total be with the newbies?

Only 8 with newbies, if ednas sterile peritonitis stays under control. I've an eglu I use for intros
Have just turfed blubs out of the nest box and onto the roosting bars!

Well Doris still seems to be on the straight and narrow but Gwen is being a broody so and so.

30 degrees FC for this weekend - arrgh - they'll all turn into evilllll pancakes. World domination by evil pancakes.

Evil pancake count = zero here at the cottage.
Awaiting the return of laying, followed by hot weather and a repeat performance.

Quick question for you bramble please....how long do they take to return to laying?

The broody girls are now not laying, Pamela never lays so the burden is all on Nessa. Which means I am getting the bargainous total of 3 eggs a week.

DH keeps muttering about conducting an egg cost benefit analysis .

Blubbs usually takes a week. There may be softies ... rather sad here as mad bad Eddie took a no return at the vets yesterday she was a wonderful girl and we wouldn't have her suffer.

3 more on order from Wernlas. Pick up in aug to take us up to 7 ladies, all being well.

Oh no bramble, I'm so sorry That's so sad - they're such characters it's so easy to get very attached to them very quickly so it must be very tough when you've had a girl for a few years. RIP Eddie.

I'm glad that you have your newbies on their way. I always have to 'overlap' dogs as I can never bear the thought of being dogless - I am sure the same will apply to my ladies in the future.

(sorry about the gibberish and poor grammar, I'm tired)

I gibber as a matter of course.

Chicken maths mean that to 'replace' the two who recently died, I am buying three.

Laying recommenced today - how is dore?

How are the other evil pancakes? I reckon the cold weather might give us all some respite!