Good morning all.
This morning when I went to feed everyone Broody was in the coop but not in the nest - a good start to the day. She had spent the night on the roost in her rightful position next to the rooster which is great progress.
I let them all out to start my daily rounds, and while I was cleaning the coop she came back in and went into the nest. I decided to sit and watch her for a bit - I often do this when they are laying so it was not unusual to her. She was sitting there flicking straw about and I thought to myself - "I don't think this is broody behaviour, I think this is egg laying preparation." I decided to give her an hour to produce and egg, and if nothing happened I would then turf her out of the nest.
Well, she laid an egg! And not only that, when I came back to get her out of the nest she had already gotten herself out and was out in the run with the rest of the flock. It is like she is her old, normal self again
On reflection, the Broody Buster cage really does seem to work, but to anyone contemplating using this method to break their broody hen I have one piece of advice for you - You MUST be persistent with it.
Yes, you can let them out for a five minute stretch each morning, but if they show any slight sign that they are heading back towards the nest you have to nip that in the bud immediately and dump them back in their buster cage for another 24 hours.
I have to admit - I felt terrible doing this. But once we had gotten into a routine of overnight in the cage, 5 minutes out in the morning, back into the cage, it really started to take effect. All up she spent about 5 days and nights in the buster cage. And that was in heat of 100F+ over each of those 5 days. I suspect in cooler weather it might be done in less time.
I look forward to hearing of anyone else's experiences using the Buster Method in the future. For now though (unless something unanticipated develops) this Broody is declared Busted!
- Krista
