Forced Brooding

[GooseLover27]

I have a Speckled Sussex hen named Fallon, when I got her last fall the owner said she was brooding, yet she makes no move to sit on eggs. She is not laying and isn't acting broody. Should I put her in a small sucluded pen alone with fertilized eggs. I'm opened to any sugestions.

 

[JanO]

If she's not broody there is absolutely no way to force her. She will do it in her own time and no amount of coaxing will help. If the weather is still chilly, she may be waiting until it's warmer to start laying. My hens just started laying regularly about a week ago. I'd give her some time and wait for her to start laying, then watch her for signs of going broody. Unfortunately there's not much else you can do.

 

[Elke Beck]

I think a big issue with hens going broody is whether they feel safe. If you just got her last fall, she may still be adjusting. Some take longer than others.

 

[GooseLover27]

Thanks, should I seperate her from the others with some fertilized eggs to make her feel safer brooding?

 

[bobbi-j]

No. That will not help. Chickens are a flock animal, and if you separate her, you will cause her more stress. If you really want eggs hatched on your own time, get an incubator. If you don't care when you get chicks, wait it out. I have some 3 year-old hens who have never gone broody. Ever. My Buff Orpington did once, but she was in a place that was impossible to protect from predators, so after a week I moved her. She flipped out (even though she was moved at night) and has never gone broody again.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

She has no idea if eggs are fertile or not and being confined with fertile eggs does not trigger broodiness. It is a completely instinct behavior and some hens just have the instinct more than others. I have a very broody cochin who has never seen a fertile egg in her life and will brood a completely empty nest for a month if I let her.

Give her time and see if it happens. Perhaps collect eggs at the end of the day so that nest always has a few gathered so she sees them and see that this is a good, safe place for eggs but really it will either happen or it won't.

 

[postalpoultry]

She has no idea if eggs are fertile or not and being confined with fertile eggs does not trigger broodiness. It is a completely instinct behavior and some hens just have the instinct more than others. I have a very broody cochin who has never seen a fertile egg in her life and will brood a completely empty nest for a month if I let her.

Give her time and see if it happens. Perhaps collect eggs at the end of the day so that nest always has a few gathered so she sees them and see that this is a good, safe place for eggs but really it will either happen or it won't.

exactly right! and I know nothing of sussex but some breeds are just more broody than others. cochin is prime example LOL most banties in my experience are much more apt to go broody and sometimes STAY that way LOL