Broody help..

[RockyPhoenix]

What can you do to entice a hen to go broody? I have a buinch of golf balls in one nest to help lure one of my hens to go broody...any other ideas or things youve done? THANK YOU!

 

[panner123]

Mother Nature is at work here. They never go broody when you want them to. But, when you don't want them broody, you have to fight them off the next. You are doing all you can with the folf balls.

 

[Lobzi]

I have the same question. My Little Hen has 10 eggs in her nest. I know she will go broody soon but Im concerned about her dealing with too many eggs and what if they ALL hatch! I have talked with her but she is not listening to me. Im wondering if I should remove some of the earliest eggs (I number them so I know which are the oldest). I wonder if the earliest laid eggs are too old to hatch at this point.

 

[panner123]

Under 28 days, leave them. A hen doesn't set on the eggs until she has a few eggs in the nest. She will kept them warm enough to be good, but that is all. Once she gets 4 or 5 then she will go broody for good.

 

[Lobzi]

Thanks for the information. Im sort of doing my own experiment on this...that is why I numbered the eggs. When the brood hatches I can note the number of any eggs that do not develop and hatch. This will give me a sense of the optimal age of the eggs to hatch for future broods.