Sorry but that's not more natural. They don't always give up.
Natural would be sitting on eggs that were fertile because there was a rooster and in 21 days after setting began, there would be chicks and she would leave the nest to teach the chicks how to eat and drink.
Letting her sit on infertile eggs is possibly a recipe for disaster. A hen only comes off the nest once a day at the most to eat, drink and defecate. That means she is getting no exercise and not enough nutrition. If left to their own devices, they sometimes never quit on their own until chicks hatch.
I have a friend that never broke her broody hens. She had a turkey that was broody for about 6 weeks. By the time she tried to do something, it was too late. $3,000 of vet bills and weeks of physical therapy later, the turkey died. I know, I buried it for her.
While broody without the possibility of new chicks, you are getting no eggs and affecting the health of the bird.
Tried and true method that has been used for centuries is placing the hen in an elevated wire bottom cage with no bedding so cool air can get to her underside.
With 100 layers, we always had at least 2 broodies in jail. Caught early, they can be broken in a couple days, they start laying a couple weeks later.
Natural would be sitting on eggs that were fertile because there was a rooster and in 21 days after setting began, there would be chicks and she would leave the nest to teach the chicks how to eat and drink.
Letting her sit on infertile eggs is possibly a recipe for disaster. A hen only comes off the nest once a day at the most to eat, drink and defecate. That means she is getting no exercise and not enough nutrition. If left to their own devices, they sometimes never quit on their own until chicks hatch.
I have a friend that never broke her broody hens. She had a turkey that was broody for about 6 weeks. By the time she tried to do something, it was too late. $3,000 of vet bills and weeks of physical therapy later, the turkey died. I know, I buried it for her.
While broody without the possibility of new chicks, you are getting no eggs and affecting the health of the bird.
Tried and true method that has been used for centuries is placing the hen in an elevated wire bottom cage with no bedding so cool air can get to her underside.
With 100 layers, we always had at least 2 broodies in jail. Caught early, they can be broken in a couple days, they start laying a couple weeks later.
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