BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[CanadianBuckeye]

lpatelski I'm just in awe of your breeding program. I'm a newbie when it comes to doing something on purpose with my chickens, and I'm finding out just how much work goes into what you've accomplished. I'm primarily trying to breed for egg production but I have a keen interest in the meatie dept. as well, mostly for my education. It's so easy to read the posts, they go back many years, and it seems like things go quickly- but in real life three or four posts can represent two year's hard work.
Congratulations, that chicken for dinner IMO is about as perfect as perfect can be.

 

[DesertChic]

lpatelski I'm just in awe of your breeding program. I'm a newbie when it comes to doing something on purpose with my chickens, and I'm finding out just how much work goes into what you've accomplished. I'm primarily trying to breed for egg production but I have a keen interest in the meatie dept. as well, mostly for my education. It's so easy to read the posts, they go back many years, and it seems like things go quickly- but in real life three or four posts can represent two year's hard work.
Congratulations, that chicken for dinner IMO is about as perfect as perfect can be.

What she said.

 

[JiltdRoyalty]

Ditto!

 

[DesertChic]

Do broody hens ever STOP being broody after not being allowed to hatch eggs over a period of time? I'm getting quite a workout removing and relocating these girls over and over again and am desperately hoping they'll just get tired of it and go back to being hungry and "normal".

 

[bramblefir]

Do broody hens ever STOP being broody after not being allowed to hatch eggs over a period of time? I'm getting quite a workout removing and relocating these girls over and over again and am desperately hoping they'll just get tired of it and go back to being hungry and "normal".

I don't know. Personally I would just put them all in the same space with 1 or 2 eggs each and let them get it out of their system.

 

[ronott1]

Do broody hens ever STOP being broody after not being allowed to hatch eggs over a period of time? I'm getting quite a workout removing and relocating these girls over and over again and am desperately hoping they'll just get tired of it and go back to being hungry and "normal".

Yes, they will usually stop. One of mine stopped this week. She will likely go broody again in a month though. I might get an egg or two first. Last year she did this 5 times!

 

[Kev]

Do broody hens ever STOP being broody after not being allowed to hatch eggs over a period of time? I'm getting quite a workout removing and relocating these girls over and over again and am desperately hoping they'll just get tired of it and go back to being hungry and "normal".

The normal incubation period is 21 days so it is going to be a long wait. Many hens will continue to sit for another 21+ days.

It is a common practice for those who use broody hens to hatch eggs for various reasons(peafowl, exotics) to have a hen cover more than one batch during her broody period. Peafowl eggs take 26-28 days to hatch and they can do two sets of those, easily as long as they are kept in good condition.

To stop broodiness, it is necessary to either let them hatch chicks or completely block access to any nest sites- repeated removal will not deter many hens one bit, especially if they are used to handling. A small pen with no nest boxes, OK to have a cockerel/roo with her(in fact this will really break her broody mood faster) or a versatile cage that can be used for a broody hen, broody breaker, growout cage etc. If there are no nest boxes outside of the pens, it can work to throw her out to free range and close all 'indoor access' for the day. With this probably need to repeat a couple days if she settles on a nest when all birds are let in for the night..

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Do broody hens ever STOP being broody after not being allowed to hatch eggs over a period of time? I'm getting quite a workout removing and relocating these girls over and over again and am desperately hoping they'll just get tired of it and go back to being hungry and "normal".

They don't always stop. If you don't intend for a broody hen to hatch chicks, you need to break them. The sooner the better and the more smoothly it goes.
There are many techniques but most take a long time and lots of labor. The simplest, quickest, tried and true method is to put them in a suspended wire bottom cage with food and water. If caught early, it will be over in 2 days.
I know a woman that had a pet turkey go broody and didn't break it. After a long time, she spent 3,000 in vet bills and months of physical therapy and the bird still died. I know, I buried it for her.

 

[DesertChic]

Oh boy! Okay. It looks like I have a lot of work ahead of me. I have one broody pen that I can actually suspend well above the ground inside of one of the secure, enclosed runs. I'm thinking of putting my toughest broody in that one for the night in the hope that she cools enough to break the cycle. Two others seem to be finally getting over their broodiness after three days of keeping them locked away from their desired nesting spots. That leaves me with one or two others....and the White Rock sitting on eggs.

Did I mention I'm already up to 85 chickens? I think these girls are plotting against me. It's definitely a chicken conspiracy.

 

[CanadianBuckeye]

Oh boy! Okay. It looks like I have a lot of work ahead of me. I have one broody pen that I can actually suspend well above the ground inside of one of the secure, enclosed runs. I'm thinking of putting my toughest broody in that one for the night in the hope that she cools enough to break the cycle. Two others seem to be finally getting over their broodiness after three days of keeping them locked away from their desired nesting spots. That leaves me with one or two others....and the White Rock sitting on eggs.

Did I mention I'm already up to 85 chickens? I think these girls are plotting against me. It's definitely a chicken conspiracy.

85 chickens!? I have a lot of catching up to do. Maybe I should put some eggs under that Cornish..... she's pretty determined.