Took me 3 months to figure out my hen was just broody, not sick

I spent a good 12 weeks running every test I could think of because one of my Rhode Island Reds kept sitting in the nesting box all day. I checked for mites, worms, respiratory stuff, even drove her to the vet for a fecal. Turns out she just wanted to hatch eggs I didn't have. I finally googled "chicken won't leave nest" and felt like an idiot when the first result said broody hen. Anyone else spend way too long diagnosing a non-issue?

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lisa_grant3d ago

Brought her inside my house for two weeks to "hospitalize" her in a dog crate with special food and electrolyte water. She hated it, screamed every time I walked by, and my living room smelled like a barn. Put her back outside and she went straight to the nest box. Shoulda just stuck a frozen water bottle under her and called it a day.