Broody hen

[Pawpaw&Mawmaw]

Thanks everyone for your feed back!
Unfortunately she has decided to be broody in all the ladies favorite nesting box. Why it's their favorite box I have no idea, but apparently they do! She's really starting to upset the rest of my flock. This leads me to think that if I gave her a couple of fertual eggs something bad would happen due to everyone else wanting in the same box. My main concern is keeping my Molly Ollie healthy. I'll do more research, maybe try junebuggena's suggestion. I hate the idea of her not being able to huddle while it's so cold here. I do hope she goes broody again later in the year.

 

[song of joy]

Just removing her repeatedly from the nest box won't do anything.

X 2. A broody hen will usually return to the same next box, regardless of whether or not there are eggs present. Just removing her from the next is not sufficient to break broodiness.

An elevated wire cage works for me. 3 days in the cage with food and water but no bedding of any kind and they are back to normal.

X 2. Sometimes 48 hours is sufficient, but it may take 3 days. It also helps if she can't see the nest.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I lock up my broody(s) in a small wire pen with food and water for about 2 days, then after that I test them each afternoon to see if they try and hustle back to the nest box. Sometimes 3 days is enough, but I've had it go on 4 or 5 days as well.

 

[WindyTam]

My Buffy went missing three weeks ago! We searched high & low, and gave up, thinking a coyote must have gotten her, as she liked to roam onto the trees....long story short, I found her today!! Under the porch with about 20 eggs!! This is my first year with chickens...started in June with day old chicks...what should I do to help her?? It's a drafty porch, but she is up against the foundation. Do I leave her be, so as not to disturb her? Do I leave tidbits near her? This hideaway is quite a ways from the normal coop, and my chickens range the farm...I feel like a first time mommy!!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

My Buffy went missing three weeks ago! We searched high & low, and gave up, thinking a coyote must have gotten her, as she liked to roam onto the trees....long story short, I found her today!! Under the porch with about 20 eggs!! This is my first year with chickens...started in June with day old chicks...what should I do to help her?? It's a drafty porch, but she is up against the foundation. Do I leave her be, so as not to disturb her? Do I leave tidbits near her? This hideaway is quite a ways from the normal coop, and my chickens range the farm...I feel like a first time mommy!!

Are the eggs fertile? Do you have a rooster?

 

[WindyTam]

Yes, we had 3 roosters, but 2 were so mean that they went in the freezer about 3-1/2 weeks ago. But, we still have one mild-mannered Roo, to watch over the girls. So, I believe they are fertile

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Yes, we had 3 roosters, but 2 were so mean that they went in the freezer about 3-1/2 weeks ago. But, we still have one mild-mannered Roo, to watch over the girls. So, I believe they are fertile

They will hatch after 20-21 days of incubation, so they should be close. Once they hatch and she leaves the nest you may want to collect them and keep them confined for a week or two so the chicks can have access to food and chick starter.

 

[WindyTam]

They will hatch after 20-21 days of incubation, so they should be close. Once they hatch and she leaves the nest you may want to collect them and keep them confined for a week or two so the chicks can have access to food and chick starter.

Thank you for the heads up. Do they just continue to hatch day after day, since each egg was laid a day apart? I was thinking of piling up some hay around her area to just let her be, all cozy & all, with food & water nearby. But also thinking I could move the whole kit & caboodle into a brooder box we had built for when the chicks first arrived last summer. But wasn't sure if it would "put her off" of her clutch? So many questions, and so so thankful for BYC and your help OldHen Tam

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

If you hen did it correctly they will generally lay all the eggs before they begin to brood them so any that will hatch will do so within a day or two. The hen will generally leave the nest after the second day of the first to hatch and will abandon the rest of the eggs to take care of the chicks.

If they are infertile for some reason she will continue to set on them until they go rotten.

For the best survival rate it's always best to step in and try to control a hen with chicks, though many have had perfectly healthy and happy chicks just leaving them be. It can depend more on how you feel about it. I personally like to control it to minimize the stress on myself.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

As far as moving the clutch before they hatch many hens won't have it, though others have had luck doing it by confining the hen to a crate for a day or two with her eggs. My experiences has been that the hen wants to return to the sight of the nest, not necessarily the eggs. It's all instinct for them, and they don't really think, just act on the instincts.