Broody Buff Orpington...In January!!!!

[speckledhen]

Is it really true that once they go broody they will never lay eggs again?

They will quit laying till they have the broody spell out of their systems, not never again. They quit while sitting and raising chicks, though some start back laying when the chicks are a couple of weeks old. Last broody quit laying for six months, but she's laying again now.

Sleeping in nests is a bad habit and I have some who just recently started doing that, even though they didn't for the first couple years of their lives. Not a good thing at all, but DH wasn't diligent about removing them every night.

Not all hens go broody so your others may never do that.​

 

[mamaguigan]

My Buff was sitting on 5 eggs and once we took the eggs away, she came out of the coop. Silly bird, and we only have 4 chickens, so i was surprised that there were 5 eggs. She didn't mind my daughter reaching under her for the eggs, though. Chickens sure are silly!!

 

[flockman]

Wire cages are the best way to break a broody other than letting them hatch eggs. Our EE/Cochin in her first year of life hatched a clutch of 4 and fostered 6 chicks from the feed store. She went broody 2 more times. Since then she has been broody 3 more times. In her 1 and a half years of life she has been broody 6 times. We can't part with her though. She is friendly even when broody. She puffs up but does not peck. I use a wire cage break up my broodys.