Broody or Bust: Can You Handle a Sitting Hen?

[BYC Project Manager]

Have you ever stared into the eyes of a hen who has decided it’s her destiny to become a mama? Welcome to the broody zone—a place of pecked hands, growling fluffballs, and unpredictable emotions (hers and yours). Whether you're excited, anxious, or just curious about how to handle a broody hen, this quiz is your ultimate test.

Let’s find out: Are you ready for the feathery rollercoaster of broody behavior… or are you headed for a bust?

QUIZ:​

1. Your hen suddenly refuses to leave the nest box. What’s your first clue she might be broody?
A. She's laying an egg a day.
B. She puffs up and growls when you come near.
C. She leaves the nest to eat and scratch.
D. She’s been there for an hour—must be tired.

2. You try to collect eggs and she pecks you. What do you do?
A. Leave her alone.
B. Wear gloves and grab the eggs anyway.
C. Respect her decision and let her hatch whatever’s under her.
D. Run. Just run.

3. How long does a broody hen typically sit to hatch eggs?
A. 10 days
B. 14 days
C. 21 days
D. 30 days

4. You don’t want chicks. What’s a good way to "break" a broody hen?
A. Put ice cubes in the nest.
B. Move her out of the coop.
C. Use a wire-bottom cage with food, water, and airflow.
D. Yell, “Snap out of it!”

5. Can a broody hen still lay eggs?
A. Yes, daily.
B. No, she stops laying.
C. Only every other day.
D. She lays twice as much.

6. You want to give her fertile eggs to hatch. When’s the best time?
A. Anytime—just toss them in.
B. Right at the start, within a day or two of sitting.
C. After 10 days of sitting.
D. Once she lays 10 eggs herself.

7. Can you move a broody hen and her nest?
A. Never—she’ll explode.
B. Yes, but carefully and during nighttime.
C. Only if she’s pecking other hens.
D. Only if she gives verbal consent.

8. A broody hen leaves the nest once a day to:
A. Sunbathe and do yoga.
B. Eat, drink, poop, and stretch.
C. Find more eggs.
D. Gossip with the flock.

9. You find her sitting on golf balls. What does this mean?
A. She’s learning to play.
B. She’s confused.
C. She’s in full broody mode and anything round will do.
D. You’re being pranked.

10. Should you let a first-time broody hen hatch eggs?
A. Only if she’s been trained.
B. Sure—some do great right away!
C. No—only experienced hens.
D. Yes, but only fake eggs.

---

Answers:​

1. B
2. B
3. C
4. C
5. B
6. B
7. B
8. B
9. C
10. B

---

How Did You Do?​

0–3 correct:
Hen-dangered! You're not quite broody-ready. Do a little more reading and observing before entering the feather zone.

4–7 correct:
Cluck-worthy Contender! You’ve got a solid start, and with a bit more experience, you’ll be a broody boss in no time.

8–10 correct:
Broody Boss! You know your way around a nesting box like a seasoned flock whisperer. Your hens are lucky to have you!

Conclusion:​

Whether you’re just curious or deep in the fluff and feathers of broody hen life, this quiz gives you a peek into the quirky world of sitting hens. Share your score, your broody adventures (or disasters!), and your favorite hen mama stories.

 

[Debbie292d]

Raising and breeding silkies is tough when you're dealing with constantly one or more being broody. Right now, there's four in our broody jail, but I've had five of twelve of our breeding hens in here. We just won't tolerate them being broody as it's not healthy and it's wasting precious egg-laying time.

Many of us have something like this. The 2x4 is all they get to perch on so air can go underneath them, like mentioned above.



After finding some will pace or be awkward, tipping the waterer and/or feeder, we went with ones that can't be tipped. The feed is in a stainless still little feed bucket with hooks to hook on the cage. The water is a verticle nipple bottle. None of them are used to the verticle as they came from horizontal ones, but they catch on quick.

It takes about four to five days to break a broody this way.

 

[talkinboutchickens]

Broody Boss.
My little Phyllis has been broody for like 2 months now and won't stop- even if she isn't laying on any eggs. She thinks that I'll let her this time because she has hatched chicks for 2 years in a row now. Last year, along with Rose and Dottie, and the year before, she co-parented with RoseAnd I never really see her come out of the nest often at all.

I just love letting her hatch chicks because I know that it makes her happy, but her babies always end up being feral

 

[FrostRanger]

Have you ever stared into the eyes of a hen who has decided it’s her destiny to become a mama? Welcome to the broody zone—a place of pecked hands, growling fluffballs, and unpredictable emotions (hers and yours). Whether you're excited, anxious, or just curious about how to handle a broody hen, this quiz is your ultimate test.

Let’s find out: Are you ready for the feathery rollercoaster of broody behavior… or are you headed for a bust?

QUIZ:​

1. Your hen suddenly refuses to leave the nest box. What’s your first clue she might be broody?
A. She's laying an egg a day.
B. She puffs up and growls when you come near.
C. She leaves the nest to eat and scratch.
D. She’s been there for an hour—must be tired.

2. You try to collect eggs and she pecks you. What do you do?
A. Leave her alone.
B. Wear gloves and grab the eggs anyway.
C. Respect her decision and let her hatch whatever’s under her.
D. Run. Just run.

3. How long does a broody hen typically sit to hatch eggs?
A. 10 days
B. 14 days
C. 21 days
D. 30 days

4. You don’t want chicks. What’s a good way to "break" a broody hen?
A. Put ice cubes in the nest.
B. Move her out of the coop.
C. Use a wire-bottom cage with food, water, and airflow.
D. Yell, “Snap out of it!”

5. Can a broody hen still lay eggs?
A. Yes, daily.
B. No, she stops laying.
C. Only every other day.
D. She lays twice as much.

6. You want to give her fertile eggs to hatch. When’s the best time?
A. Anytime—just toss them in.
B. Right at the start, within a day or two of sitting.
C. After 10 days of sitting.
D. Once she lays 10 eggs herself.

7. Can you move a broody hen and her nest?
A. Never—she’ll explode.
B. Yes, but carefully and during nighttime.
C. Only if she’s pecking other hens.
D. Only if she gives verbal consent.

8. A broody hen leaves the nest once a day to:
A. Sunbathe and do yoga.
B. Eat, drink, poop, and stretch.
C. Find more eggs.
D. Gossip with the flock.

9. You find her sitting on golf balls. What does this mean?
A. She’s learning to play.
B. She’s confused.
C. She’s in full broody mode and anything round will do.
D. You’re being pranked.

10. Should you let a first-time broody hen hatch eggs?
A. Only if she’s been trained.
B. Sure—some do great right away!
C. No—only experienced hens.
D. Yes, but only fake eggs.

---

Answers:​

1. B
2. B
3. C
4. C
5. B
6. B
7. B
8. B
9. C
10. B

---

How Did You Do?​

0–3 correct:
Hen-dangered! You're not quite broody-ready. Do a little more reading and observing before entering the feather zone.

4–7 correct:
Cluck-worthy Contender! You’ve got a solid start, and with a bit more experience, you’ll be a broody boss in no time.

8–10 correct:
Broody Boss! You know your way around a nesting box like a seasoned flock whisperer. Your hens are lucky to have you!

Conclusion:​

Whether you’re just curious or deep in the fluff and feathers of broody hen life, this quiz gives you a peek into the quirky world of sitting hens. Share your score, your broody adventures (or disasters!), and your favorite hen mama stories.

View attachment 4182621

1. B I've certainly encountered the angry pancake before, although Basil made dinosaur noises rather than growled


2. This depends a bit for me, I usually leave hens alone when they're in the nest box, if I suspect a hen might be going broody, I'll leave her alone and come back later, if she's still there by evening I'll know she's broody and I need to set up the broody jail. If I were letting her hatch though, I would pick B especially since I don't have a rooster so extra eggs would be guaranteed infertile and even if I did, I would still want to avoid a staggered hatch


3. C iirc


4. C Worked both times I needed to break a hen


5. B And she won't lay again for a few weeks even after you break her, the sooner you break her the sooner she'll lay again


6. B with the caveat that you wait 2-3 days to make absolutely sure she's broody and determined to set


7. B but unless you have a good reason it's best to move her where you want her right at the beginning as moving her can break some hens sometimes


8. B


9. C, all the hormones can make them a bit silly, some are so determined they'll even brood woodchips or absolutely nothing


10. B, some hens can be a bit unreliable the first time but many to great, just depends on if you want more chicks at the time

10/10 it seems. I've been through it twice and fortunately neither time either were mean broodies nor were they hard to break.

 

[ParanoidAndroid]

My best hen went Broody recently and knowing her personality I was skeptical, but since she's never done that before, I let her try.
She incubated ONE Egg for 2 Weeks then left because she saw everybody else eating Watermelon.
I finished the Egg in the Incubator. Didn't want her work to go to waste.

 

[Jkbaca]

I have to say that how I deal with a broody depends a lot on her individual personality. I have a hen who I can give babies to raise any time -even if she's not broody. I have hens I can move any time of day without any issue. I have some I let staybroody and others who need to be "broken" because they will just sit themselves to illness/death. Just depends.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Broody Bossy.
Lol. I've corrected some of the Quiz errors, after broody hatching for 15 years (in good fun )

1 B...and don't forget the knuckle pecking when you come near and the zen stare.

2 B...without the gloves...take from her tail end distract with other hand. I can never find gloves and they're clunky for grabbing eggs

3 C but amazingly most of my broodies start the hatch on day 20. By 22 most are done.

4 C but only if you want to risk never using that hen again to brood. Continued breaking builds bad broody habits. I use the brood and if eggs fail get foster chicks if I want that hen for brooding faithfully.

5 B...mostly, but don't underestimate the hen. Many go into a pre-brood phase and can add an egg or two after appearing to be in a full brood. Always mark your eggs with set date and count. Check the wings too! They can be sneaky.

6 B is closest but still not right. I never use at day 1 or 2 as most hens go into a pre-broody stage before they deeply settle. Some go on and off for a week before settling in for real. Most hens will sit for up to 4 weeks, sometimes 5. Make sure they are deeply settled if the hatch is important. Day 3 to 6 is generally safe, but know your hen.

7 B...maybe. Once they lock in for real, many hens will move wherever if gently and carefully moved. Others not so much. Some lock into the original location and will break and pace and growl until they can get to the original nest, which is a pain if it's a poor location. Only move at night, and I strongly recommend to a dim location that is isolated with restricted room and access, food and water nearby. Cross fingers. Most touchy movers usually settle after a couple of days. Use dud eggs until you confirm settled. And then some you could hang upside down (to avoid knuckles being ripped apart from vicious pecking), plunk on eggs, and they growl and tell you to bugger off and let them get to work. Lol.

8 all...but generally for 20 minutes once at most twice a day...and watch the sneaky ones. I had one hen always hatched 110% as I'd set, mark, count, and she still managed to steal an egg. I'd even frisk her wings. I like isolated broody hutches to avoid the stealing problem, the little stinkers, especially between 2 competing broodies.

9 C and you have a Silkie. For the love of all sacred give the poor girl some fertile eggs or foster chicks before she performs a miracle and actually hatches those golf balls.

10 B but watch and only if she is on day 3 or 4 or so. Many first do a great job, but some of the young girls are uncertain. I had one poor very young gal stick to her set like her instincts told her but she nearly jumped out of her feathers when they began to hatch. She wasn't sure what the heck was going on down there! But she hung in there and was an attentive mother.

Broody hens are so much fun. Enjoy them.

LofMc

 

[Altairsky]

My serial broody Peach is just the best. She's very mean to all the hens but she let me do all I want with her and her chicks.

She has a perfect 3 months cycle: 1 month lays eggs, 1 month sits on eggs, 1 month weans babies, repeat.
If I don't give her enough eggs to sit on, she will collect the eggs from nearby boxes, even through the separator. Last time the fake eggs disappeared from the nearby nests, and I found them all under her, lol.
She has one nest box she considers her personal one and she always use that one, and she's extremely jealous of it, and will get extremely nervous and angry if another hen uses it.

 

[fluffycrow]

2 B...without the gloves...take from her tail end distract with other hand. I can never find gloves and they're clunky for grabbing eggs

Yes! I have found this to work not only for broody monsters, but for young cockerels just coming into their hormones, and play fighting everything.

3 C but amazingly most of my broodies start the hatch on day 20. By 22 most are done.

Same here. I have only had one chick that was hatched by a broody hatch on day 21. Her first chick hatched a day earlier, and by day 22 they were off. Most of the other hatches leave the nest on day 21, or very early on day 22.

Broody hens are so much fun. Enjoy them.

LofMc