Breaking a broody in freezing weather?

[andreamunroe]

One of my Buff Orpingtons has gone broody, again (she went broody in the fall too). I have a seedling heater mat in the nest box to prevent frozen eggs- which is obviously not helping cool her down haha. I’ve been reading about the wire-bottom cage method- but it goes down to -15 or -20’C here (about 0’F) at night here, so I’m worried to cage her in the coop. Any ideas? She’s been broody for about a week now. I keep going in after dark to put her up on the roost- I’m not sure if she’s headed back to the nest box immediately in the dark or not, but she’s there when I go out in the morning. She doesn’t peck at me- she’s a gentle darling, but she’s not eating enough for this time of year/temperature (though I suppose the heat mat in the nest box means she doesn’t need to burn quite so many calories to stay warm?)

Any ideas? I don’t have a rooster or the ability to let her hatch out eggs right now (or a big enough coop for more chickens)

 

[azygous]

Do you have a wire cage with an open mesh floor? That's the first requirement - something to confine her so she can not get to a nest and something that will permit air to circulate under her.

The principle of breaking a broody is to deprive her of direct contact with a solid surface, heated or not, that reflects her body heat back to her underparts. This is what sustains the broody hormones.

You can provide heat for her if you have the means (electricity to the coop and run) as long as the heat is vertical or above her, not under her.

An alternative would be to bring her into your house or garage where it's a little warmer to set up her cage. You cannot break a broody, in practicality, without a cage. She will find alternatives to snuggle down and keep her underparts warm, even roosting on a perch gives her this ability.

 

[aart]

Those temps are tough for sure....and you need to keep her out of the nest all day too.
Maybe crate her during the day and block nests at night when yo put her on the roost...
....if you don't have a slight warmer space to keep her at night.

 

[chickens really]

You can set her up in the Coop. Use a wire bottom cage. I had Three just recently and they broke overnight.