Broody breaker 101

[Painted Calls]

To clear up any confusion, this is a dog crate.

This is a pet carrier.

A pet carrier would not work.

 

[Painted Calls]

2ft cage-
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/dumor-24-in-rabbit-cage-hlf1700-1457219

That's bigger than you need really but hard to find something smaller. Works well for transporting multiple birds to the fair or holding them for sale too. Not a bad investment.

Love that! Great price, too! Saving it.

 

[Ridgerunner]

As you can see we all have our ways of doing this. I'll just describe mine.

1. What can I use to make a broody breaker? Do you all have photos?

2. How large should the brooder breaker be?

This has been covered. Mine is 3' x 6' but it is also a brooder built into the coop and used to isolate chickens wen I need to. I've had three broody hens in it at the same time.

3. How often do I take her out of broody breaker?

Once I put them in I leave them in for 72 hours. I don't see the benefit in letting them out for a short time each day. They have food and water, it doesn't hurt them to stay in.

4. Is she going to be ok standing on mesh wire on the bottom of the cage? I worry about her feet. Cause most pics I see have no litter or hay etc. just the cage wire bottom….

Good question. My broody buster floor is 1/2" hardware cloth. Some wire mesh has sharp pips on it due to the manufacturing or galvanizing process. Not all but some. Those can tear up the feet. But if you have the sharp pips at all they should all be pointing in the same direction. So point them down if you have them. The wire won't hurt their feet that way.

5. How long do you recommend she stays in broody breaker?

As I said, I do 72 hours straight.

6. When I place her in the coop and run she goes straight to the nesting boxes which is literally not so far away from coop. I worry that she will be broody forever just because of proximity of the nest and the coop. The coop has two roost on the top and the nest are behind the coop. I don’t think I have ever once seen her sleep in the coop. Even when she was not broody I think she slept in the nest. Do they know the difference?

I'm not sure what you are asking here.

 

[Akachicklil]

As you can see we all have our ways of doing this. I'll just describe mine.


This has been covered. Mine is 3' x 6' but it is also a brooder built into the coop and used to isolate chickens wen I need to. I've had three broody hens in it at the same time.


Once I put them in I leave them in for 72 hours. I don't see the benefit in letting them out for a short time each day. They have food and water, it doesn't hurt them to stay in.


Good question. My broody buster floor is 1/2" hardware cloth. Some wire mesh has sharp pips on it due to the manufacturing or galvanizing process. Not all but some. Those can tear up the feet. But if you have the sharp pips at all they should all be pointing in the same direction. So point them down if you have them. The wire won't hurt their feet that way.


As I said, I do 72 hours straight.


I'm not sure what you are asking here.

Thank you so much for your recommendations. Very helpful and reassuring. Yes, question number 6 was a bit wordy and confusing. Lol… that’s how my brain works.

Question 6 clarification:

Does having the nest and coop in such a close proximity trigger hens to become broody?

You will see the proximity of the coop and nest boxes in the photos below. Also, check out my broody breaker set up.

Thanks again!

Lastly, I just realized a very important question or clarification I had after reading
“The Chicken Chick's Guide to Backyard Chickens: Simple Steps for Healthy, Happy Hens”
by Kathy Shea Mormino

Lighting?? What do I do about light? Is she supposed to be exposed to constant lighting during her time in broody jail? Or is she supposed to follow normal day light and night time darkness? I ask cause I thought I read something about the lighting…. I could be wrong. This breaking a broody hen thing is like a science. It’s so fascinating.

Again thanks so much for your help. I am
just so amazed how many folks are so dedicated to the car and love for chickens!!! More than any other animal I think.

 

[aart]

Does having the nest and coop in such a close proximity trigger hens to become broody?

My brooder is I should say I brood in my coop(after a week inside the house brooder),
never triggered a broody to my recall.

 

[3KillerBs]

The only reason my brooder was outside last summer is that the Little Monitor Coop is too small to put it inside.

I don't mess with lighting in either direction. They get daylight and darkness according to nature's cycles.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Question 6 clarification:

Does having the nest and coop in such a close proximity trigger hens to become broody?

No. Most of us have nests inside the coop. Hens go broody there. Often a hen will hide a nest, often a good distance away from the coop, and go broody. There is no rhyme or reason to it. Some people have a theory as how you can make a hen go broody but that does not always work. Hens go broody because of hormones. Heredity has a lot to do with that. Some go broody a lot, some never do.

What do I do about light? Is she supposed to be exposed to constant lighting during her time in broody jail? Or is she supposed to follow normal day light and night time darkness?

I follow normal day and night patterns, no artificial light for me.

 

[K0k0shka]

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor, gives the feet a break from the wire floor and encourages roosting.

I went even farther and wired the 2x4 to the crate walls a few inches off the ground, so that it really looks like a roost. I recently used the crate for my injured hen and it took her a whole WEEK to even notice she had a roost in there! Once she found it, she roosted on it every night, but had to sleep on the floor for a week first. Chickens are so adorably dumb sometimes.

 

[K0k0shka]

Lovely coop and run! It’s an oasis! I see you live in Bean Town! How do they do in the winter??? Where do you put your chickens during the yearly blizzards!! I lived across Fenway park for 4 years!!!! Lovely town.

Aw thanks! I’ve made a bunch of changes since I wrote my coop article. I should update it. Moved the coop, added improvements…

Beantown is awesome! The chickens do just fine in the winter. I have abundant year-round ventilation so I haven’t had any frostbite issues. The run is covered in plastic on the sides in the winter, so the bulk of the snow stays out. I shovel the rest and throw dry leaves on the ground (I bag and collect them in the fall) and the chickens are happy. They rarely ever stay in the coop, and never for a full day. Just long enough for me to shovel and throw some leaves down, then they come out. We’re getting a blizzard tomorrow, actually!

 

[K0k0shka]

My girl is super tame. She lets me hug her and she perches on my shoulder like a parrot. Even being broody she is very gentle with me when she puffs up and barely pecks at me. I hope she doesn’t hate me now and become less tame since you mentioned your personal concern with your chickens trust.

I subsequently found that my concern was unfounded. I had two repeat broodies last summer that were taking turns almost non-stop, so I had to cage them in my outdoor broody breaker. I also had to keep a different hen in an actual dog crate for a week, to recover from injuries, and a pullet who was sick… Now I have a hen who’s in jail because she’s a bully. None of those birds seem to hate me because of it! On the contrary - the extra handling, attention and treats have improved our bond. I have spent solo time with each caged bird, to break up her long boring days of confinement, and they have seen that as a plus, more so than they’ve suffered from the actual confinement. So that has definitely eased my guilt.