5 Month old won't stop brooding

[Lolas mom]

Hi All -
I have a 5 month old barred rock who has been laying for about a month - every day - she has been my most reliable layer. Two days ago, she got in the nesting box and didn't want to get out. She puffed out her feathers and squeaked at me. I read on here to kick her out and make her go play, so I did. Once she was out of the coop, she ran to the food and seemed normal. She had layed an egg that first day. When I opened up the coop for the girls to roost, she hopped back in, puffed up and went straight to the nesting box again. That is where she slept and was there until I kicked her out again yesterday afternoon. No egg. That's fine, she deserves a day off! I closed the coop and she ran straight for the food and water and chowed down. Opened the coop for roosting and she went straight to the nesting box again. Today, again, no egg when I made her get out. She will not eat or drink in there. I put watermelon (her favorite) right up to her beek and she still wouldn't touch it. Kicked her out again, out she went and straight to the water and food again. I opened up the coop tonight and decided to block the entrance to the nesting boxes and she is not pleased! The other two girls just look at her like she is an alien. I am trying to break her of the brooding, but should I be concerned that she is not laying eggs and won't get out of the nesting box without being forced? She doesn't act sick, but I am sick of seeing her all puffed up and unhappy! Any advice?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

she's not going to lay again until you break her of her broodiness, than it will take around 3 weeks before she resumes, the longer you leave her the longer it will take to break her, put her straight on concrete in a pen, or in a wire bottom cage off the floor, somewhere where she can't sit tight and heat up, odds are she is going to be a repeat broody, they drive me crazy.

 

[Lolas mom]

I can't believe it! She was my most friendly girl and now she is just a crab! Should I kick her out of the coop first think in the morning then? The other two can stay in until they lay an egg, but I guess I will have to send her to free range before the other two. How long do you think it will take for her to be broken? I have tried since the first day. She's kind of crazy now... ;(
Thanks for the help!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

If you catch them right away, 3 days, up to 5 days, but just throwing her out of the coop won't help unless you give her other arrangements at night, if she sleeps in the nest boxes it won't work. It straight time, no sitting and heating up at all.

 

[gypsychicken]

Buy a dozen fertilized eggs from your local feed store and put her to work. She'll hatch you up some chicks in 21 days.

 

[Lolas mom]

I blocked the nesting boxes so she can't get in them at night, but the other girls will need them in the morning. It is just the strangest thing to me for her to do a 180 in one day. I will keep her out of the nesting boxes at night and get her out of the coop first thing in the morning. Crazy little gal!
As for getting fertilized eggs for her - my plate is full, I can't do chicks right now (I don't think I could do chicks this time of year anyway!)!
Thanks and wish me luck with the most headstrong creature I have ever been around!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

They do get very determined, and possessed, crazy chickens.

 

[DanEP]

If she's really determined to go broody locking her out of the nest boxes probably won't help she'll just find some other place to sit. Lock her in a cage with no bedding up off the ground with food and water 24 hours a day for 3 days and give her a try if she's still broody back in the cage for a couple pf more days till she breaks. What you want is a breeze blowing up her butt and light, just don't leave her in the sun but no dark coops either.As her body temp cools the level of hormones that make her broody will drop.

 

[Lolas mom]

Thanks Dan -
I will try to find a cage... I think a friend of mine might have something that will work.
So, it's a hormone thing? Complex creatures, aren't they?!?

 

[aart]

My experience went like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest, I put her in a wire dog crate with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop and I would feed her some crumble a couple times a day.

I let her out a couple times a day and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two.

Added water nipple bottle after pic was taken.