Broody Hen

[Ractay]

Probably a silly question.. But i'm brand new at this whole chicken thing.

Is there a way to encourage a hen to become broody?
I've read that over time most of the 'broodiness' has been bred out of chickens by those who mainly want them for egg production. True? False?

Any advice would be great thanks

 

[Country Heart]

Some breeds are more prone to going broody than others. Silkies have quite a reputation for going broody. I have an Orpington who goes broody multiple times each spring.

 

[Happy Chooks]

I have tried every trick to encourage broodiness and none of them have worked. They will go broody only when they are ready too. I had 1 girl "thinking" about it for many months. She would screech, puff up, peck, plucked her belly clean but would lay her egg and get off the nest like nothing ever happened. After about 3 months of this, she finally did go broody.

Hatcheries have bred a lot of broodiness out of the birds, as they want maximum egg production for hatching and selling chicks. Hatchery birds still can go broody, but not as likely as with breeder quality stock. (none of my hatchery birds have ever gone broody)

If you want a broody, then choose a broody breed and order some chicks/hatching eggs from a breeder. Cochins, Orps, Silkies, Barnevelders, Brahma's, etc are breeds that tend to go broody more often.

 

[Ractay]

Perfect! Thank you for all that info.