Bantam Silkie broody?

[maryhbrock]

This is new for me - I've never had a broody hen. Yesterday was my annual coop clean out/ power wash day, even though it was 100 degrees. I have 5 assorted hens, three are laying, the others will be soon. We started shoveling out the old sand and hemp, and noticed my bantam silkie was in the nesting box. So we shoveled everything else out, trying to respect her privacy. 90 minutes later, she was still there! I went to check on her, she chattered at me, and stuck her butt up at me. I reached under her, and she is sitting on 3 eggs - one of which is hers. We don't have a rooster, btw. I snuck the eggs out, and within 5 minutes she had joined her sisters foraging on the lawn. Eventually they all found their way back to the coop and went to bed.

This morning - she's back in the box, with two eggs (1 of hers) and the same reaction, and I removed the eggs. An hour later, she's back in the box, same behavior, on top of another hen's egg., and I removed the egg. I'm not happy with what I'm reading here and other sites about broody hens not eating, etc. Should I just continue with what I'm doing? Is it significant that the flock leader died last week? Before that the silkie wasnt broody...

 

[Theorrin]

contrary to what others say hens will NOT starve themselves. continue what ur doing though some r stubborn and may not stop and some may require a bit more "convincing"

 

[ChickyCh00k]

I don't think you need to worry about her "starving". The problem is that they won't eat / drink but once, maybe twice, per day and they won't poop in the nest, which means they aren't pooping as much as normal either. So, it's just not super *healthy* if the broody isn't actually hatching eggs, as they can lose weight, perhaps get a bit dehydrated, and the poops are huge and STANKY!!

I had one go broody right at the beginning of spring. I just kept taking her out of the nest and walking her clear across the yard. She'd make her way back to the nest, and I'd take her out again, and over and over for several days, until one day, she didn't go in the nest... (Thankfully, I had the time to do this all day, every day for several days - if you don't, there are other ways to "break the broody"). Typically, broodies won't lay eggs while they're broody, so that also another possible concern - it took my girl about a week to start laying again.

It sounds like your silkie is *thinking* about being broody, since she's still laying and seems to go back with the flock if there are no eggs to sit on (my broody girl would sit on an empty nest ALL DAY if I let her). So, if you just keep taking the eggs out and getting her off the nest, hopefully she'll lose motivation!

Good luck!!

 

[Saveria]

If you don't want her to be broody there are ways to stop it. If you want her to hatch or give her chicks, you can let her continue. They will hop off the nest to eat, drink, and bathe, but as was said, some could use a little help, and should be dropped in front of the food twice a day.

 

[maryhbrock]

I'm going to need help with this, I think. She's still broody, and isn't laying. It's been over a month, and I move her off the nest several times a day.

 

[ChickyCh00k]

Have you tried a cool bath? Part of the reason they go broody is because their body temp rises, indicating that they need to be hatching eggs. So, lowering the body temp can help. Another method is to put her in an elevated wire-bottom crate (so air is always circulating under her and she can't "set") with food and water for a few days. I wasn't able to do this method with my broody because she squawked bloody murder non-stop when i put her in the crate. She was so loud that it was echoing for what seemed like miles and I was afraid someone in the surrounding area might call the authorities.

Here's an article that has some ideas:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/how-to-break-a-broody-hen.65588/

Here's another VERY detailed article (you have to scroll down a ways to get to the actual "how to" portion):
https://the-chicken-chick.com/broody-breaker-when-hens-mood-to-hatch/

Also, If you type "broody" or "broody breaking" using the thread search here on BYC, you're likely to find a plethora of ideas!

 

[Saveria]

I think the cool bath should be the last resort, since it is easy for chickens to get chilled. We did it on our orpington, and all she did was get more mad at us and start sneezing while stuck in the nesting box. Luckily, it was unusually warm here that week so it didn't develop into a full blown illness. Here is one more article in case this has any other tips that help.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/broody-breaking-ala-aart.77915/

I also heard that the sooner you do it, the easier it is to get them to go back to normal (which makes sense), so it is good to have a broody breaker cage on hand if you don't want your hens hatching eggs at every chance.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I'm going to need help with this, I think. She's still broody, and isn't laying. It's been over a month, and I move her off the nest several times a day.

Did you actually use a breaker? A half measure isn't going to break them, especially a very broody breed like SIlkies.

 

[maryhbrock]

Thank you all for your help! Because of the heat, I was letting the girls free range almost every day, and that seemed to be working on her broody mood. But then we suffered a daylight raid by a bobcat. He stole one hen over the wall- gone. Later we found a ton of the broody silkie's feathers, but she seemed uninjured. As the week went on, though, I kept finding her staring at the wall in the roosting area, so I separated her for a little lap time, hand feeding, and TLC. Sadly she died about a week after the attack.

This is getting so hard to keep going. They are my pets, they all have names that match their appearances and personalities. I've now lost 4 this year, out of 7. Two with massive tumors from Mareks, and two from the bobcat. My heart is breaking, and it seems like I'm just replacing them like disposable pets.

 

[Saveria]

Thank you all for your help! Because of the heat, I was letting the girls free range almost every day, and that seemed to be working on her broody mood. But then we suffered a daylight raid by a bobcat. He stole one hen over the wall- gone. Later we found a ton of the broody silkie's feathers, but she seemed uninjured. As the week went on, though, I kept finding her staring at the wall in the roosting area, so I separated her for a little lap time, hand feeding, and TLC. Sadly she died about a week after the attack.

This is getting so hard to keep going. They are my pets, they all have names that match their appearances and personalities. I've now lost 4 this year, out of 7. Two with massive tumors from Mareks, and two from the bobcat. My heart is breaking, and it seems like I'm just replacing them like disposable pets.

Maybe you can take a little break from getting new ones, even if it means taking a small break from having them at all. During that time you can shore up your defenses, maybe build a bigger run that is predator proof. They don't need to free range as long as their space has about 10 sq ft per bird.