Broody hen

[J99]

I have a hen that’s been broody . Well we put her in the food at the morning and she eats like she’s starving then we do it again in the afternoon then we put her on the roost at night . I thought she would stop after like 21 days !!!! She hasn’t stopped!!! She’s been broody forever and ever!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

She may never stop. They don't have calendars, they usually wait till they have baby chicks.
To break a broody hen's hormone cycle, one must use an elevated wire bottom cage so cool air can reach their underside.

 

[Peppercorngal]

Another way is to buy two day old chicks and sneak them under her at night. She will think they are hers and the broodiness will stop. She will raise them and you will have more chickens! I assume you have no rooster and she has not been sitting on eggs?

 

[J99]

Another way is to buy two day old chicks and sneak them under her at night. She will think they are hers and the broodiness will stop. She will raise them and you will have more chickens! I assume you have no rooster and she has not been sitting on eggs?

I DO have a rooster and him or the other hens may kill the baby chicks if I put them under her at night I’m afraid
I take her eggs , if I wanted baby chicks I’d let her keep some and I may have to
I had no clue they may never stop

 

[J99]

Since she’s already been broody like two months is it to late for me to put some eggs under her and let her hatch them?
Will my rooster and other hens kill them?

 

[centrarchid]

Current clutch likely froze before she went broody, killing the clutch. To get a more reliable outcome, I suggest you break her of current broodiness by destroying eggs and making so she cannot get back to the nest site.

I have a game hen in a similar situation that will be treated as I describe later. It will take a week or so for her to come back into lay when we can attempt again with reduced risk of eggs freezing.

When your hen goes broody again, then you will have option of putting eggs of your choosing under her with better odds she will incubate successfully.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I wouldn't put fresh eggs under her. That would have her sitting 3 months. That's too long. Plus, if she does finally decide to quit, the embryos are dead.
I would do chicks or break her. If you get chicks that are young enough, you put them under her immediately after dusk, she will protect them from the other birds. What breed is she?
The reason I say, if the chicks are young enough, is that as they age they quickly become independent and may not bond with her but it usually works.
Sometimes hens will quit and sometimes they won't, often depending on the breed.
Even if they do eventually quit on their own that excessive time without moving and limited food and water isn't good for their overall health.
I have a friend who always had broodies. Silkies, cochins, seramas and turkeys.
She never took any action to break their broodiness. About the only thing she ever did was to put some of my fertile eggs under them. One of her turkey hens stayed broody for over 3 months. By the time she decided to intervene, the turkey couldn't move on its own. After 3 months of physical therapy and $2,500 of vet bills, the hen died.

 

[Peppercorngal]

Since she’s already been broody like two months is it to late for me to put some eggs under her and let her hatch them?
Will my rooster and other hens kill them?

If, and only if she will eat for you while on the nest would tell you to consider giving her eggs to set. I have a broody, Maggie, who will eat and drink from little cups that I put in the nesting box with her, or that I hold. If that's not possible, then I'd say, No, it's too long a time and she will suffer nutritionally. You CAN break a broody hen, but I don't. I don't believe in punishing a hen because she has hormones that tell her to bring chicks into the world. I won't do that. Others can advise you on that practice. I'd give her chicks, that would be my solution. The hen, if she's a good mother, will protect the chicks from other hens and the rooster too. Most likely the rooster won't give the chicks a second look, mine never does. Good Luck!

 

[centrarchid]

Think about it from the hens perspective. Do you want to raise your kids, or be cuckholded? Especially in the context of the cost and risks associated with such an effort being a parent.

 

[Peppercorngal]

Think about it from the hens perspective. Do you want to raise your kids, or be cuckholded? Especially in the context of the cost and risks associated with such an effort being a parent.

Who are you speaking to? I have absolutely no idea what you are trying to say. Last time I checked chickens don't worry about the cost of raising their young, you lost me . . . . . ?