Can broody be contagious???

[TAMMACLEAN]

It has to be! I just had 2 silkie hens hatch out 6 babies, 5 silkies & 1 Cochin/silkie mix. Now my other silkie hen is sitting on a couple of eggs, one is hers. On top of that I have a buff Orpington sitting on 7 EE/Silkie mix eggs, and one if my australorps is broody, no eggs for her. And when I went to close the chickens I caught one if my Cochins sitting on 3 eggs!! I took hers though. Not many people want Cochin/silkie mix chicks.

So is it contagious or is it just the time of year. I really wish I had some eggs for all these chickens to sit on.

 

[A Chicken Owner]

It's the time of year to go broody but a hen going broody may encourage another hen to go broody.

 

[TAMMACLEAN]

That's what I figured. At the rate that are starting to be broody I'm not going to have any eggs to eat.

 

[A Chicken Owner]

What breeds do you have?

 

[TAMMACLEAN]

I have silkies, Cochins, buff orpingtons, australorps, Easter Eggers, olive Eggers, white leghorns, & white Plymouth rocks and one jersey giant.

 

[A Chicken Owner]

Certainly all your silkies (if there old enough) will go broody. Most of your Cochins are likely to go broody, most of your buffs and most of your Australorps. EE's, olive eggers, leghorns, Plymouth rocks and jersey giants are unlikely to go broody so you should have enough eggs.

 

[TAMMACLEAN]

I hope so. We absolutely love our chicken eggs. After having these I can't even imagine having store bought again. One of my silkies is on her second time being broody. Didn't even get many eggs from her. I have 4 Cochins and 2 of them have already been broody a couple months ago. I'm not complaining cause they do a much better job than I can. It's just funny to turn around and there's another one "yelling" at me. not to mention, I have 2 that are only a few months old, haven't even started laying, who lay with one of my silkies. Yes they are silkies too.

I haut love my baby chickens!

 

[A Chicken Owner]

If you somehow stop silkies from going broody (out of all chickens, silkies are probably the most likely to go broody), they're accually decent layers.

 

[TAMMACLEAN]

My silkies were laying pretty good. Untill they decided they wanted to be mommies.