Broody hen! How can I stop her?

[Show Sebright]

My barred rock Dixie was always top of the pecking order. She has recently started to team up with our Barnevelder named Drama. Dixie and drama peck our 2 wyndotts. Then we noticed that in the back or the coop there was a nest. Dixie made the nest and was sleeping in it. Now she is staying in the hen box all day and night! Only Dixie and Drama lay in that hen box. Oh and unlike most times Dixie is still dominate. When I Oppenheimer the hen box to get the eggs she poofs up and becomes the size of the hen box. She is the runt and is smaller then everyone. She make a weird sound like she is mocking me when I laugh. Any suggestions how to stop this? I can’t get the video to attach so pictures will have to do. The last picture of Dixie on the bench is before she became broody.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

There is one tried and true method of breaking broodiness that has been used for centuries around the world. That is to place the hen in an elevated wire bottom cage so cool air can reach their underside which breaks the hormone cycle. Put a bit of food and water in the cage and she should be broken in 2 or 3 days.

 

[aart]

I can’t get the video to attach so pictures will have to do.

Vids have to be uploaded to YouTube, or similar platform, then linked here.
Pics are fine if they show what we need to see, which is the whole coop and run.

 

[aart]

these are my got o signs of a broody hen:
Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, does she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck(ticking bomb) sound on her way back to the nest?

If so, then she is probably broody and you'll have to decide how to manage it.




If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, IMO it's best to break her broodiness promptly.

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 on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run 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.

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.

 

[Show Sebright]

these are my got o signs of a broody hen:
Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, does she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck(ticking bomb) sound on her way back to the nest?

If so, then she is probably broody and you'll have to decide how to manage it.




If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, IMO it's best to break her broodiness promptly.

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 on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run 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.

Tho not necessary a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.
View attachment 2275972

Yes to all your questions. Except Dixie doesn’t “pancake” she poofs out to be 2x her size. Sh looks like a feather ball. I have a smaller coop. We started putting cold water bottles under her until I can get the cage set up. Fingers crossed my mom lets me do it. Thanks for all the great advice.

 

[Backyard Hencam]

The cage idea really works. I've had good luck (breaking the brood in about 6-7 days) by taking them out of the nest several times a day where they run around, eat, drink, and poop, and putting them on the roost at night. Because they can't see in the dark, they stay on the roost until morning. The concept is: cool down their underside.
Good luck. While broodiness is annoying, it is to be expected. I've had several hens over the years who never became broody and some that became broody 2-3 times a year. Interesting! Best of luck!

 

[Show Sebright]

Omg gust one day of cold water bottles under Dixie has kicked her out of her nests! She is sill poofing up and doing her weird cherp. Thank you guys so much. Only down side is Drama is not sure if she can lay her egg.

 

[aart]

Omg gust one day of cold water bottles under Dixie has kicked her out of her nests! She is sill poofing up and doing her weird cherp. Thank you guys so much. Only down side is Drama is not sure if she can lay her egg.

She may not be done yet.
They usually won't lay until a good week or two after she's been broken.

 

[Show Sebright]

Umm she has been good al day... then Drama layer her egg. She at in it with the bottle but as soon as we took the egg she left. But later I go to check on them to see is anyone else laid. I found this... no shell, no membrane, just insides! Drama and one of my Wyandottes (Maple) have lates their first eggs shellles but with a membrane. And CAspaina my other Wyandotte lays perfectly normal eggs. What would I get this thing?!?!