broody question

[shawnkfl]

if a hen goes broody and you want to move her away from the rest of the flock, will she mind being moved and will she stay broody?

what if one goes broody and you don't want her to be? can you snap her out of it somehow?

 

[Southernbelle]

I used empty cat litter buckets as nest boxes, so when I got a broody I could pick her up nest and all and move her to a dog crate. They don't take too well to you moving them to a nest they didn't build. Some will tolerate it, some won't. The standards are less forgiving than the bantys.

I hate breaking a broody, but most people put them in a rabbit cage or otherwise block them from the nests. Cold air on their bum is what usually snaps them out of their broodiness.

 

[Judy]

Most people on here do move a broody to let her set. It seems to go well for most, especially if done at night. If you have trouble doing it, if the hen seems upset, here is a method to try:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=162759

I moved mine and she got upset, so I moved her favorite nest box into the broody pen, and then she was fine.

To break a broody, you can try simply repeatedly removing her from the nest, or even locking her out of the coop during the day. You can also put her in a wire cage of some sort, propped up on blocks or something to allow air flow underneath her. Give her food and water but no nesting material at all. Supposed to work within a couple of days. You can also give her some fertile eggs, or let her set for a week or two, and then slip some chicks under her at night. It took 3 months for mine to come out of it last time, so this time, I just got her a few chicks.

There's no always or never about these things, of course. Chickens are individuals, and people have been trying to breed broodiness out of chickens for years now, so all sorts of things happen.