The hen that couldn’t say no
Sep 23rd, 2008 by Laura
Remember how we were missing a hen? And I thought she might be sitting?
Meet Abby, the banty hen that couldn’t say no. Originally it was Ann that was missing, then they switched part way through the last 4 weeks, not sure exactly when because they’re almost identical looking.
Anyway, on Sunday I decided to go looking for my missing broody banty hen. I thought she was underneath the shack, but I was wrong. Turns out she’s been inside the hen shack the whole time.
There’s an old wood box in the shed that I keep meaning to clean up and paint so that I can store things in it. I’ve never gotten around to it and so it just sits at one end of the open space, with some various crap on top to keep the hens from roosting on it. Abby had wedged herself in behind it, in a space not more than 6″x12″.
I only found her because her stash of eggs had gotten so big that they were starting to spill out into the gap between the box and the wall. In all, she had 25 banty eggs in her stash. Apparently her twin Ann was giving her eggs to Abby, and Abby just could bring herself to say “no more!”
There was no way to tell which were viable and which weren’t. Most of them were pretty cool and she’d been sitting more than 3 weeks, so it seemed that nothing was working. I ended up taking the eggs away and moving the box to block her out. She seems to be okay with it and has rejoined the flock and starting roosting with Ann on the top of the wall again.
Of course, we haven’t gotten a banty egg since Sunday so now I need to find their new hiding spot. Ah the joys of broody banties!
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And in case you just need a chicken pic fix, here’s a couple more. Oscar, my boyfriend looking handsome. And Agnes, the old lady of the flock. She’s now three years old and in the midst of her fall molt. And lastly, May and Betty looking pretty.
Wow, Agnes is so pretty! We had banties when I was a teenager and all I remember is one of the roosters hated girls in dresses and would viciously attack any that dared to be in his line of sight.
When I went to check if my broody hens eggs were fertile, I went to some candling egg sites to see what I needed to look for. I used my hubbies mini LED flashlight and sat the egg on top in the dark coop. Some I saw nothing but a big air pocket and pitched those, others I saw veins and a dark lump that moved! Beyond cool. I hope this helps for the next time.
Megan - Agnes is my favorite and seems to also be a favorite with everyone else as well. I love me my banties.
Michelle - yeah, I’ve candled in the past. But based on the fact that Oscar doesn’t completely have sex figured out yet, and that the eggs were mostly really cold, I decided not to bother. I REALLY don’t need any more chickens right now! But you’re right that it’s a good way to go and pretty easy to do.