Broodies hatching,, check the pics on pg 4 of baby duckies

[Sugar Sand Farm]

I have 2 broody ducks sitting on 30+ eggs. They are sharing the duties. Then I have a blue orp who is broody and GD little sizzle is sitting on air (keep taking the eggs) and now my blue cochin is bakc to being broody. Her chick is only 6 weeks old Geeish I was hoping for some eggs from her. I keep taking them off her but she is determined to sit.

 

[WriterofWords]

Quote:
My son is 17 1/2, I haven't been broody in years lol!

Micki, we are just not going to have eggs darn it,,,,

 

[cybercat]

You little nest and white eggs might be a local bird or a feral chicken. I found a bird nest with eggs on the ground here. Caught me off graurd did not know what to think. Ours was spotted though so I knew that is was a wild bird but i know some wilds also have white eggs.

 

[Beekissed]

I have a little info that may help you and I was amazed at the effectiveness of it.

Previously I would take a persistent broody and dunk her in a bucket of water and toss her out the pen....this seemed to work on most but I have one really persistent gal that would need this done several times before it worked.

I recently learned that all I need to do is prepare nests in a separate broody pen and take the broodies off the coop nests and transfer them to the new nests......in the daytime! Don't put any eggs under them, just transfer.

You see, I wanted broodies, so every time I got a few, I moved them to a pleasant, quiet broody pen to do their thing. First I would wait and see just how broody they were going to be.....at least a week of sitting on a coop nest and in the broody pen they go.

If you transfer at night under cover of darkness, this works wonderfully. They will sit on a clutch of eggs until they hatch.

In the day time? EVERY single broody transferred in the day time was highly upset at being separated from the flock and refused to sit thereafter! What a great little discovery! And it stuck....no more broodiness at all. I've been broody free for 2 wks, when just that short time ago, I had 3 persistent biddies hogging my nests and fighting beak and claw when you took them off.

Even my career broody, Nancy, who is the most persistently broody hen I've ever encountered and has been bucketed and pulled off of nests more times than I can count......even her.

NO MORE BROODIES!

 

[WriterofWords]

I moved 4 broodies earlier today and they relocated with their nests. I'm going to grab those white eggs out of the bush and put them in the bator, they are chickens, just small ones, maybe a new layer? The 4 I moved are 3 ducks and 1 chicken, the chicken decided to use a kennel that doesn't have drain holes and in this rain it would have filled up fast so I moved it onto the porch with her. The duck in the turned over feeder I moved complete, but the two that had their nests on the ground in a low area I had to move the duck and run back and grab eggs with a hissing, cussing duck following me trying to attack me as I grabbed 16 eggs and ran with a basket back to where I wanted her. The other one I moved only had 11 and she's a much nicer duck. Midnight is back in the trough nest with the other Big Sissie who is broody in her sister's nest now. Duchess, has 18 eggs in her nest, it looks like maybe 3 different color eggs in there. She and Nugget had a falling out a week ago and she's been hanging around with little Turk,, so I think the funny Turken baby is probably his and hers.

You really dunked your hens in a bucket of water???? I never would have thought of that.

 

[chickenfever]

My son is 17 1/2, I haven't been broody in years lol!

 

[chickenfever]

Quote:
Thanks for the info, I'm having the same problem with too many broodies!
When you separate them and put them in the new nest are they in a pen where they can't go right back to the nest? And how long do you wait before letting them out again?

 

[Beekissed]

The broody pen I have is designed where they can view but cannot reach the rest of the flock. When taken off of nests and placed in this pen upon new, more private nests during the day, they immediately hopped off the nest and started complaining. After seeing, for the next three days, that they had no intention of settling down and nesting, I just let them rejoin the flock.

This is a broody pen that I have used all spring for 3 sets of broodies.....one pair at the same time. When transferred at night under a towel, they seem to settle right in and are very content to hear the flock but not have to rejoin them.

Yes, I have dunked broodies! Only for a second or two, upside down....about three dunks usually does it. Changes their minds~usually! I have one career broody that is seldom affected for long....within a week she will be back on the nests and trying to steal everyone's eggs.

 

[thebritt]

Quote:
It's one thing to be broody with babies...but when there aren't even any eggs, I can't relate!

And I totally empathize with the issue of no other hens getting to use the nests. I've gone so far as to put the ridiculously broody hens in an unused rabbit hutch for a few days. Sometimes works. I have an unproven theory that once a broody gets a taste of sitting, it may take up to 21 days for them to get over it. I haven't been able to accurately time the "broodiness" because I get distracted and lose count of the days....

 

[WriterofWords]

I have two sisters, Big Sissie and Little Sissie, Big Sissie has been sitting for almost 3 months now and has hatched two batches and is on her third and happy as a clam. She's fat and sassy and ready to keep sitting. Little Sissie is on her nest now and is just going into her third week. Charlotte will go broody (1/2 Silkie) and stay that way until the last egg on this Earth is hatched.