HELP! BROODY HEN PROBLEMS

[Farm boy 14]

HELLO, I have a broody hen and its causing some problems. she has been broody now for 3 weeks. mainly because I cant have any more chickens right now, so I pull the eggs from her every day. One day there was 10 eggs under her! I have tried pulling the eggs and putting her in a kennel by herself all day but it isn't working. I don't have an extra coop right now though to isolate her. Anything you can think of will be helpful. THANKS

 

[4 Georgia Hens]

HELLO, I have a broody hen and its causing some problems. she has been broody now for 3 weeks. mainly because I cant have any more chickens right now, so I pull the eggs from her every day. One day there was 10 eggs under her! I have tried pulling the eggs and putting her in a kennel by herself all day but it isn't working. I don't have an extra coop right now though to isolate her. Anything you can think of will be helpful. THANKS

Can you put her in the crate in a garage/shed? The crate needs to have a wire floor, no bedding, and on bricks or cinder blocks so air can rush underneath the crate. Make sure she has food and water! Good luck!

 

[Silkylover12]

Hi. That seems like quite a problem. I haven't heard of broody problems like that ever. What breed is her (out of curiosity)?

 

[Farm boy 14]

silkie mixed with black australorp. sadly I do not have a shed to keep her in.

 

[bobbi-j]

If it's been three weeks already, she may give up on her own. I've had broodies do that. Can you wait until the rest of the hens have laid and then lock them out of the coop, or take her off the nest box and block that for the rest of the day? Just open it back up in the morning, knowing you may have to remove her from the nest every day.

 

[OF65]

I have never tried this but a friend with her own flock said she always gave her broody hen an aspirin if she wanted to break them up.

 

[bobbi-j]

Another option would be a broody buster cage. @aart has good pics of their setup.

 

[aart]

I have never tried this but a friend with her own flock said she always gave her broody hen an aspirin if she wanted to break them up.

Whaaaaat!?! Never heard that one before!

Another option would be a broody buster cage. @aart has good pics of their setup.

Best bet is a wire crate.....might take while after 3 weeks of setting, best to break them quickly. ..and silkies can be serially and chronically broody.

My experience went like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest, I put her in a wire dog crate with smaller wire on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop with fed and water

I let her out a couple times a day(you don't have to) and she would go out into the run, drop a huge turd, race around running, take a vigorous dust bath then head back to the nest... at which point I put her back in the crate. Each time her outings would lengthen a bit, eating, drinking and scratching more and on the 3rd afternoon she stayed out of the nest and went to roost that evening...event over, back to normal tho she didn't lay for another week or two. Or take her out of crate daily very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.
Feed and water added after pic was taken.

 

[Sparrowsong98]

I have always just pulled my girls off and taken the eggs. It sounds kind of harsh, but after 3 weeks or so, they are done with this fad and never sit diligently again.

 

[aart]

I have always just pulled my girls off and taken the eggs

Like.... pull them off the nest, multiple times a day, for 3 weeks?