Bantam has gone broody - what do we do?!

[Shadrach]

Thank you all of you for your replies. We don't have any fertilised eggs, and I'm not bothered if she doesn't lay for a while. I'm undecided whether to try and 'break' her broodiness, using all your tips above, or to just go with the flow and let it happen. What would happen if we just let her get on with it? Do they just give up after a while? I cannot find any info online about what happens if you just allow a hen with no/unfertilised eggs to just get on with her broodiness.

It depends on the hen and the circumstances to a greater, or lesser extent. I've not let a hen sit for long enough to find out what, or if there is a time limit. I've had hens sit for four weeks and then intervened.
I've very rarely had to do more than remove the eggs. The wire cage method is a last resort solution imo. Once the eggs are gone the hen may sit on an empty nest for a day and then spend the next couple of days wandering around puffed up and clucking. This year so far I've had 16 incidents of broodiness, one hatching and not had to resort to isolation once.
I wouldn't let a hen sit on unfertile eggs full stop.

 

[aart]

What would happen if we just let her get on with it? Do they just give up after a while?

Both extremes are that some will give up fairly quick with no eggs..... some won't, to the detriment of their health. Have read a few stories where thy actually died.
Infestation by external parasites is a real possibility with setting broodies,
whether they have eggs to hatch, or not.

I've very rarely had to do more than remove the eggs. The wire cage method is a last resort solution imo. Once the eggs are gone the hen may sit on an empty nest for a day and then spend the next couple of days wandering around puffed up and clucking.

I've had some birds break easy(usually pullets) by removing eggs and tossing bird out of nest a couple-few times a day...have had others sit in an empty nest for days on end. Have never let them go until they decide to stop on their own.
Crate is the quickest way to break them, they break faster the sooner you get them in the crate.

May depend on your set up and husbandry techniques...
@Shadrach has multiple coops and nests over a large ranging area, my birds are confined with limited nests....two very different scenarios.

I see no reason to let a bird sit with no 'reward', taking up valuable nest space, causing havoc in the flock, and possibly losing condition.

 

[Shadrach]

Both extremes are that some will give up fairly quick with no eggs..... some won't, to the detriment of their health. Have read a few stories where thy actually died.
Infestation by external parasites is a real possibility with setting broodies,
whether they have eggs to hatch, or not.


I've had some birds break easy(usually pullets) by removing eggs and tossing bird out of nest a couple-few times a day...have had others sit in an empty nest for days on end. Have never let them go until they decide to stop on their own.
Crate is the quickest way to break them, they break faster the sooner you get them in the crate.

May depend on your set up and husbandry techniques...
@Shadrach has multiple coops and nests over a large ranging area, my birds are confined with limited nests....two very different scenarios.

I see no reason to let a bird sit with no 'reward', taking up valuable nest space, causing havoc in the flock, and possibly losing condition.

It depends on the hen and the circumstances to a greater, or lesser extent.

I wouldn't let a hen sit on unfertile eggs full stop.

Yup, it's different if you are keeping confined chickens and depend on the eggs.

 

[Pekin fan]

Thanks everyone for your advice. So, yesterday I put on some gloves and lifted her out of the nest box and closed it up. She did the most enormous poos, then ate and ate! She then spent the rest of the day walking round and round the coop (where the nest box is), jumping on top of it, jumping off, going round and round again. She couldn't work out why she couldn't get in! She is also making a very different lower clucking noise, and would occasionally sit on the grass in a flat 'pancake' shape. I guess she is trying to keep her heat levels up? I was able to let the other hen in to lay when I spotted she was looking like she wanted to, as it was the weekend. I'll do the same thing today (closing the coop up) to stop the broody one getting in, but I'm working and won't be able to keep an eye on them.

 

[AmyJane725]

Thank you all of you for your replies. We don't have any fertilised eggs, and I'm not bothered if she doesn't lay for a while. I'm undecided whether to try and 'break' her broodiness, using all your tips above, or to just go with the flow and let it happen. What would happen if we just let her get on with it? Do they just give up after a while? I cannot find any info online about what happens if you just allow a hen with no/unfertilised eggs to just get on with her broodiness.

I think the only risk is that she could dehydrate/starve.

 

[Cryss]

Thank you all of you for your replies. We don't have any fertilised eggs, and I'm not bothered if she doesn't lay for a while. I'm undecided whether to try and 'break' her broodiness, using all your tips above, or to just go with the flow and let it happen. What would happen if we just let her get on with it? Do they just give up after a while? I cannot find any info online about what happens if you just allow a hen with no/unfertilised eggs to just get on with her broodiness.

To j7st allow it to happen could cause her to dehydrate, become malnourished, become infested with mites spreading to the nest, roost, and rest of the flock, and very possibly die. If there are no chicks to hatch then break her broodiness.