Broody Chicken

[meira]

Hi there! I currently have a broody chicken, I used to have 3 but the other two gave up since we don't want them hatching eggs. But, this one hen has not given up and it has been 3 months now. I am very worried that she will hurt herself constantly sitting, the only way I can get her to come out of the nesting box and eat/drink is if I physically pick her up and take her out. I have tried every technique I've seen online about this issue, but nothing has worked. I would really appreciate new and personal techniques that may help with my situation.

 

[JustBabyMargo]

Hi there! I currently have a broody chicken, I used to have 3 but the other two gave up since we don't want them hatching eggs. But, this one hen has not given up and it has been 3 months now. I am very worried that she will hurt herself constantly sitting, the only way I can get her to come out of the nesting box and eat/drink is if I physically pick her up and take her out. I have tried every technique I've seen online about this issue, but nothing has worked. I would really appreciate new and personal techniques that may help with my situation.

Have you tried a broody cage? That always works for me!

 

[rosemarythyme]

She should've been caged at the start. At this point even a broody cage might not be enough, especially if it's hot where you're at, so you may need to bring the cage indoors/into a cooler location so she's physically away from the nest and being cooled down at the same time.

 

[aart]

I have tried every technique I've seen online about this issue, but nothing has worked.

Please, tell us exactly what and how you tried.

Oh, and..... Welcome to BYC! @meira
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[meira]

She should've been caged at the start. At this point even a broody cage might not be enough, especially if it's hot where you're at, so you may need to bring the cage indoors/into a cooler location so she's physically away from the nest and being cooled down at the same time.

A month into her being in this behavior we tried a broody cage. We kept her in there for the day and at night we let her out to hopefully go back into the coop with our others. She clucked and paced all day in the cage, and the second we let her out she went straight to the nesting boxes. We tried that for two days in a row and it did not seem to change anything. We haven’t attempted this again but we might need to.

 

[meira]

Please, tell us exactly what and how you tried.

Oh, and..... Welcome to BYC! @meira
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!
View attachment 2811791

We have tried repeatedly removing her from the nesting boxes, closing them off, removing the hay we have inside of them, putting her in a broody cage for two days, and even placing something cold under her to possibly make her discouraged (we removed it not long after when we noticed it didn’t affect her at all). When we had 3 hens sitting hens, all we did was give them all fake eggs and the other two gave up after a while, but this one hen hasn’t shown any sign of quitting. It is very hot here as we are located in Texas, and she has been sitting all three months of summer, I’ve been so worried about her sitting in this heat.

 

[Iluveggers]

Could you give her 2-3 chicks? I would say try to break her, but the chicks will get her up & moving for her health.

 

[meira]

Could you give her 2-3 chicks? I would say try to break her, but the chicks will get her up & moving for her health.

We definitely would give her some chicks but this timing wasn't so good. At the time she started sitting, we recently let another hen hatch out some babies, and we just wouldn't like to add any more to our flock right now. If she was to sit next year, it would've been different. But if this does come to our very last resort, we may have to make some exceptions.

 

[aart]

A month into her being in this behavior we tried a broody cage. We kept her in there for the day and at night we let her out to hopefully go back into the coop with our others. She clucked and paced all day in the cage, and the second we let her out she went straight to the nesting boxes. We tried that for two days in a row and it did not seem to change anything. We haven’t attempted this again but we might need to.

Best to crate them as soon as you know they are broody.
The longer you wait the longer it can take to break them.
Some folks even put a fan blowing under the crate to help cool them.
I've had a broody crate in a heat wave here, I put a frozen liter bottle of water in the crate and kept moving it to the shadiest place in the yard.

It is very hot here as we are located in Texas, and she has been sitting all three months of summer, I’ve been so worried about her sitting in this heat.

Might be good to dunk her undercarriage in cool(not freezing) water, then put her in the crate.
Might even put the crate inside somewhere cooler.

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire(1x2) on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

After 48 hours I let her out of crate very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate for another 48 hours.

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.

 

[rosemarythyme]

A month into her being in this behavior we tried a broody cage. We kept her in there for the day and at night we let her out to hopefully go back into the coop with our others. She clucked and paced all day in the cage, and the second we let her out she went straight to the nesting boxes. We tried that for two days in a row and it did not seem to change anything. We haven’t attempted this again but we might need to.

2 12-hour stays after a month of brooding wasn't going to do it. Broodies optimally need to be kept around the clock in the breaker, and put in as soon as they start to set, and at that point you're looking at 48 hours probably being enough to break them.

I have a stubborn serial broody that takes around 4-5 days to break and that's with breaking right at the start.

You're probably looking at a longer stay in the breaker here, and the breaker must be elevated or kept cooler to get cool air under her belly, and she must stay in there around the clock. Only when you stop seeing some of the broody signs should you start testing if it's ok to let her out. If she even looks like she wants to head back to the nest, back in the breaker for another 12 hours at least.