diff --git a/hive-ag3nt/src/stats.rs b/hive-ag3nt/src/stats.rs
index 80298c04..cad8fce5 100644
--- a/hive-ag3nt/src/stats.rs
+++ b/hive-ag3nt/src/stats.rs
@@ -229,11 +229,15 @@ fn empty_snapshot(window: Window) -> Snapshot {
 }
 
 fn snapshot(path: &Path, window: Window) -> Result<Snapshot> {
-    // Read-only open so an in-flight writer (the harness's own
-    // turn_stats sink) never blocks us and we can't corrupt the db
-    // via a query bug.
+    // Read-only open so we can't corrupt the db via a query bug.
     let conn = Connection::open_with_flags(path, OpenFlags::SQLITE_OPEN_READ_ONLY)
         .with_context(|| format!("open {} read-only", path.display()))?;
+    // turn_stats is rollback-journal (not WAL): a read landing while the
+    // harness's own sink is mid-INSERT gets SQLITE_BUSY, which propagates up
+    // and blanks the whole stats page. Wait out the brief write instead —
+    // matches hive-c0re's host-side reader (`hive_stats::read_agent`).
+    conn.busy_timeout(std::time::Duration::from_millis(500))
+        .with_context(|| format!("set busy_timeout on {}", path.display()))?;
     let now = now_secs();
     // Fixed windows look back a constant span; `all` starts at the earliest
     // recorded turn (`MIN(started_at)`, falling back to `now` on an empty