Broody for two weeks...will she set?

[tallyho]

I have hen who has been broody for about 2 weeks. If I give her some eggs now to hatch will she make it the 21+ days? I have half heartedly tried to break her but she's still at it. I'll go in and throw her out of her nest box a couple of times a day. She eats and drinks and goes back in to her box. I'm usually pretty diligent about breaking them but they've worn me down, been doing it to someone almost all summer!

 

[mothersin2ition]

what breed is she? If she's one of the more dedicated mothers like a silkie, then I think the answer is yes. My Brahma just did the same thing, and even after she had no eggs left (I took them at day 18- most were duds and I threw the viable one in the incubator- long story) she was still sitting on bare dirt a week later. In the end, I slipped her a newly hatched chick and a couple of days later, she was satisfied and left the nest to raise the baby. She would probably have sat there for another month waiting for the bare earth to hatch her a baby

 

[Judy]

I've given them eggs after, I'm sure, at least two weeks of broodiness, and they set til the chicks hatched. I know because I felt a little guilty about making them set so long. I hope they enjoy the vacation! I've got one now, and I don't want to give her eggs til it gets cooler and the fire ants go underground.

Good luck.

Oh, I once had a broody set for six months! Eventually my roo matured, I gave her eggs, and she was a great mom.

 

[ZaneyMama]

I have a broody EE that I kept trying to break, and after 30 days, I finally gave her fertile eggs to sit on. She is still going strong and it's been 5 days. I think she'll make it the whole way - she's very determined.

I feel bad - if she makes it to the end, she'll have been broody for more than 50 days!

 

[tallyho]

She's a black copper marans and she's really in the mood. We decided to run out to the local u-pick farms to see if they have any better tomatoes than we have in our garden (bad year for tomatoes here in the NW). One farm had a mish-mash of hens and roosters running around. I asked if I could have a couple of eggs for my broody hen and they said "sure". Just brought them home and stuck them under her. She was ticked I was bothering her again but now she's sitting on eggs.

Wish me luck!

 

[Judy]

Great -- perfect ending to the story.

 

[Kittymomma]

I've put turkey and duck eggs under hens that have been setting that long with no problems. I do give my broody girls a scrambled egg a couple of times a week to help keep them in good shape and it does seem to help.

 

[tallyho]

I just tried the cooked egg and she won't touch it. I'll leave her alone for a bit. Maybe she'll have some in a couple of days since I won't be shoving her out of her nest. I had been getting her out when I brought them goodies and she'd eat and drink.

Now for another problem I just realized...She's in the house with the other girls in one of the nest boxes. It's very secure against predators (rats, 'coons) but the girls keep trying to get in the box with her. I don't have a good spot to move her to. What if I attach a curtain over the box door. Might they leave her alone? Will it bother her? Jeez, all the little details! Maybe I just need to let nature take it's course and let her do her job.

BTW, this farm had all kinds of banties and standards including a couple of turkens and fluff tops! You should see the egg variety I have. If this works it'll be quite interesting. No telling what I have.