Broody Barred Plymouth Rock.

[jnicholes]

Never mind, I found it.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-letting-broody-hens-hatch-and-raise-chicks.65989/

 

[sourland]

Hold on a second, are you suggesting I get some fertilized eggs and just have her sit on them? Wouldnt the other chickens try to attack the chicks when they hatch?

How does that work?

No since she has already been setting for 'weeks', I would not risk debilitating her any further. I would suggest fostering some day old chicks to her.

 

[jnicholes]

No since she has already been setting for 'weeks', I would not risk debilitating her any further. I would suggest fostering some day old chicks to her.

Thanks for letting me know.

 

[Carol1463]

This has been happening for weeks, and to be honest, I’m a little bit concerned. Let me explain.

View attachment 4141788

One of my hens went broody. To be completely honest, I don’t know if she’s eating or drinking. She’s not leaving the nesting box.

Every time I pick her up, I feel around her breast area, and there are some feathers missing.

I don’t have a rooster, so the eggs are not fertilized. She doesn’t know they’re not going to hatch. However, I’m concerned about two things.

First, I’m concerned that she’s not eating and drinking. I haven’t confirmed this, though.

The second thing I’m worried about is I’m wondering if she’s preventing other hens from laying. I’ve been getting less eggs lately.

Can someone please recommend me something that will help me deal with this broody hen?

When my two boody breed go to sitting , so difficult to break ! I decide okay , I'll feed & water you daily . So out I go every morning with saucer in hand with cool water / electrolyte & chicken crumbles or my mixed grain mix . They eat real good . Offer rocks in their nest . At least they get nutrition while they do their thing . I don't give up on breaking the broody . Sometimes i get it done .dog crates work great .

 

[Karlkurla Chooks]

She will not move for anyone. Just pick her up carefully and take her away from the nest. Lock her into a wire dog crate with some food and water and prop the crate up on some bricks. Leave her there for a few days.

 

[Afterburner]

Hold on a second, are you suggesting I get some fertilized eggs and just have her sit on them? Wouldnt the other chickens try to attack the chicks when they hatch?

How does that work?

I did that with a broody Cuckoo Maran once. Hatching the eggs broke her broodiness. My Chicken Mama was very protective of her kids. The other hens were fine with the new arrivals and infact one hen even snuck a couple of her unfertilized eggs into the nest. If you decide to keep her for hatching, put a feed and water next to her so that she doesn't starve herself to death.

If you want to break her of broodiness, pull her out of the nest regularly, like several times a day and carry her like baby a distance from the nest for twenty minutes at a time. Then put her down some distance from the coop. Once she gets back to the coop, repeat. This method has worked for me several times.

Another method of breaking a broody hen is grabbing her and putting her in a bucket of cool water until she is thoroughly wet from the base of the neck down and allowing her to free range afterwards. She will spend quite a bit of time cleaning herself and reoiling. Once she returns to the nest repeat. This actually works quite well. I think it takes about a week.

 

[Karlkurla Chooks]

I've heard as well about taking a broody hen for a drive in a car for half an hour? Does that really break their broodiness?


I learned earlier today that winter is not too bad for broody hens (but is for raising chicks as it is too cold for them - you really do need to keep them in a brooder box with heating etc.).
It's only the hot summer months when it is a problem, as the heat causes them to be more malnourished and dehydrated.