Broody- for the first time!!

[Minky]

Hi everyone!
Thanks for the responses!!

I had my husband build me a holding pen for extra roosters (i have 6 "tween" cockerels at the moment and so i wanted to be prepared. I had him build it so I could divide it into 2 or have it one bigger pen.
So now i have it full of 2 broodies. Is this a weird time to be broody? I understand spring, but its mid summer....???

There is a dirt floor and i made sure nothing to use as nesting material, just a cinder block to roost on so far. They are both pacing and puffed up and hating it, but I released the one who has gone broody twice before since its day 3 of breaking her- and i hoped she would roost, but I found her in the next boxes, so back to jail!!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Hi everyone!
Thanks for the responses!!

I had my husband build me a holding pen for extra roosters (i have 6 "tween" cockerels at the moment and so i wanted to be prepared. I had him build it so I could divide it into 2 or have it one bigger pen.
So now i have it full of 2 broodies. Is this a weird time to be broody? I understand spring, but its mid summer....???

There is a dirt floor and i made sure nothing to use as nesting material, just a cinder block to roost on so far. They are both pacing and puffed up and hating it, but I released the one who has gone broody twice before since its day 3 of breaking her- and i hoped she would roost, but I found her in the next boxes, so back to jail!!

They will continue to go broody until the fall when the decreasing light will lesson their hormones, and the desire to reproduce.

Some stubborn ones can take a week or so to break.

 

[carolwfuller]

It's recommended to put them in a wire bottom crate slightly elevated off the ground for 3-5 days. Keep them in it continuously until day 3 than release the hen and see if she goes back to the nest. If she does it's back to the crate for another few days. The quicker you break them the quicker they break.

I personally just put my broodies in a separate pen. They break after a few days generally.

I have been keeping my broody hen in a small cage within a cage. All 5 of them are upset. After about a week she is still broody.
Today I took her to another part of the yard and made the pen smaller and on top of wire, slightly raised. I cannot leave her there overnight because of predators so she must go back to the main pen.
You think this will do it after 3 (some) days. I am tired of snatching her out of the nest.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I have been keeping my broody hen in a small cage within a cage. All 5 of them are upset. After about a week she is still broody.
Today I took her to another part of the yard and made the pen smaller and on top of wire, slightly raised. I cannot leave her there overnight because of predators so she must go back to the main pen.
You think this will do it after 3 (some) days. I am tired of snatching her out of the nest.

Have you been keeping her in the broody breaker cage consistently or letting her out. I actually just pen mine up away from the place they want to sit, they break without the wire bottom. What breed is she? Some are tough to break like cochins.

 

[Minky]

Mine are on a dirt floor and one broke after 5 days. The other is on day 5 now and i tried her this morning but she went to nest so I will not try her again for 5 more days.

Im not sure the wire floor is that important. I am hoping anyways. Best of luck to you!

 

[carolwfuller]

I have 6 grown hens (1 year old now). One has been broody JAN (broke her)/// April 4- hatched out 9 chicks and raised them to 6 weeks// NOW(in process of breaking her). I think she needs more time to recoup and dont need more chicks right now....

BUT now another hen is broody... I would consider letting her sit on some eggs just to give her the experience, maybe 3-4 eggs. What do you think? I'd rather not have more chicks, especially since thats just more crowding over winter... but I'm afraid if I break her she may just go broody every couple months.

Both these are EE (sold as auranuca) what should I do- ?
More chicks and let her hatch out a small clutch or wait til spring?

do chickens need that experience?

 

[carolwfuller]

Mine are on a dirt floor and one broke after 5 days. The other is on day 5 now and i tried her this morning but she went to nest so I will not try her again for 5 more days.

Im not sure the wire floor is that important. I am hoping anyways. Best of luck to you!

thanks Minky!

How is this pen set up? No nest I'm sure, but anything else?


My experience went like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest, I put her in a wire dog crate with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop with feed and water.

I used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.
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my brooder does not seem to eat or drink. I do give her food and water and an occasional cantaloup slice? I am on day two in the small wire away from the pen. No nesting material. In the shade. Last night when I took her into the large pen to go to bed she went straight for the nest. I take the nesting material out at night but as soon as I put it in again, there she goes, and the other ones can barely get in. I don't like this but it is pat of seasonal chicken raising. For the first time I have a broody hen

 

[carolwfuller]

Have you been keeping her in the broody breaker cage consistently or letting her out. I actually just pen mine up away from the place they want to sit, they break without the wire bottom. What breed is she? Some are tough to break like cochins.

She is a golden lace winged wyandotte. I have not figured out how to keep her safe at night and not have her in the nest or coop with the others. Should I close up the nesting area at night? Should I change the nesting hay?

 

[aart]

She is a golden lace winged wyandotte. I have not figured out how to keep her safe at night and not have her in the nest or coop with the others. Should I close up the nesting area at night? Should I change the nesting hay?

I'm going thru the same thing, it's too hot to keep breaker crate in coop all day, so it's in the run in the morning, then under shade in the yard in the afternoon. I close up nests and let her out a couple hours before roost time. She'll roost if nests are covered. Then I open nests in the morning and she's usually bock at the nest by the time I'm done cleaning and back into the crate she goes.

 

[carolwfuller]

I'm going thru the same thing, it's too hot to keep breaker crate in coop all day, so it's in the run in the morning, then under shade in the yard in the afternoon. I close up nests and let her out a couple hours before roost time. She'll roost if nests are covered. Then I open nests in the morning and she's usually bock at the nest by the time I'm done cleaning and back into the crate she goes.

I decided to move her breaker cage into our small garage and leave he in overnight. Two night and I will see what she does after that