Broody Silkie

[ErikaSmit]

Our little Silkie Honey Mustard has become broody. Husband tells me I should leave all the eggs in the nesting boxes so she will quit. Is this true?

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f134/edeckah/100MEDIA_IMAG07441.jpg

 

[bargain]

Our experience has been that the silkie will be encouraged by all the eggs..

.The only way we have discouraged a broody is to move the hen into a quiet and dark area, with a fan blowing on her. Hope this helps... Nancy

PS we had one silkie go broody, mid air, sitting on imaginary eggs on a roost and I finally had to "save her life" by breaking the broody as she couldn't see her imaginary babies! True story!!! Silkies are quite the broodsters! Good luck

 

[ErikaSmit]

Haha!! I swear, chickens are not dull pets

 

[California_chickie]

Take the eggs away from her ASAP. She will sit on them forever. Her behavior & the presence of eggs could also encourage other Silkies in your flock to do the same-- you're actually helping her get back to her normal lifestyle by breaking her broodiness, unless of course you want to hatch some chicks!
Bargain knows what she is talking about! Dark space, fan blowing, she will gently get the hint that she needs to go back to laying eggs & not be a mama hen right now. It works, and she'll just think she was treated to a little "mini vacation" with cool breezes & food all to herself...

 

[nurse_turtle]

Leaving the eggs will encourage her, and others, to become broody. A broody hen lays no eggs, then she raises her chicks for 6 weeks or more and seeing more eggs laying around will tempt her to become broody again. A silkie will be broody forEVER is you let her.

 

[NovaAman]

Unless of course you would like babies... Me, I'd give her some eggs. They make great incubators.

 

[Cuccismith]

ugh! I only have 7 chickens... 3 are silkies, and one died recently due to poor health being broody! Now my two others are broody AGAIN-
i don't have a dark place to put them. Is there a way to do break them outside?
Thanks!

 

[amswainwright]

No, in fact i find that the main cause of broodiness is leaving too many eggs in the nest. To prevent broodiness, chase of the hen off the nest and remove any eggs from the nest. Hope this helps.

 

[polla]

Hello, my silkie Katherina has been brooding for 3 days!
no eggs were in the nest, i took it out of the coop, cleaned it and put some cold sand in.
Before returning the nest, i checked the coop and Katherina was brooding in the spot where the nest used to be. Put the sanded nest back and back to it she went!
Tomorrow i shall try the"dark place and fan" (large box with a cut out for fan)
for suggestions!

 

[Kuntry Klucker]

If you don't want her to hatch chicks then you need to remove the eggs. If she has eggs to sit on she will remain in the broody mindset.

You can "break" a broody by removing her from the coop and placing her in a solitary location with food, water, but NO shavings. If she cannot make a nest she will forgo the broody mindset and go back to her normal chicken routine.

Leaving the eggs in the nesting box is a sure way to keep her broody. So, no offense, but your hubby could not me more wrong.