Aspen Anderson
Chirping
(I hope I'm posting this in the right location.)
I always wanted a silkie. They're so cute and fluffy and cuddly and sweet and TOO GOSH DARN BROODY!!!!
I have already searched up articles on how to stop broody behavior, but none of them are seeming to work for several reasons:
1) Remove eggs: We check for eggs daily. There was a time when she was hiding her eggs, but this was before she went this broody (she simply laid them in the wrong spot). I now make sure to check all over for eggs. Not only that, but she will brood on literally nothing. She just wants to sit.
2) Constantly removing hen from nesting boxes: Firstly, I do this whenever I see her. All that happens is her getting frustrated and she can concentrate on nothing but getting back to the hen house. Secondly, my whole family either works or goes to school, so we can't always be out there with her, removing her from the hen house.
3) Closing/removing nests: I have tried this. I did everything I could to remove and block off all nesting possibilities. She still is insistent on sitting wherever. She'll even brood on a bar!
4) Ice: It's recommended to do this in warm weather, but I live in stubborn old Utah where winter refuses to go away. It's warming up slowly, but I haven't had the chance to do this. I don't know when it'll be warm enough and I don't know if I can afford to wait that long.
5) Solitary confinement/"Chicken prison": There are so many reasons why I don't want to do this. The main reason being I only have 2 bantams, both of which have been banished - for lack of a better word - from the regular hens (long story) and need to be separated. Therefore, if I removed my silkie, the other bantam would be all alone. If this is my only option, I could try to work something out, but I'd rather it not come to this.
Does anyone have any other options that might work?? I'm desperate. She's my favorite chicken, and she's not been acting like herself due to this broodiness.
It's also affecting our other bantam, who is so attached to my silkie that she'll stand and watch my silkie brood, waiting for her to be done (which she never is).
I always wanted a silkie. They're so cute and fluffy and cuddly and sweet and TOO GOSH DARN BROODY!!!!
I have already searched up articles on how to stop broody behavior, but none of them are seeming to work for several reasons:1) Remove eggs: We check for eggs daily. There was a time when she was hiding her eggs, but this was before she went this broody (she simply laid them in the wrong spot). I now make sure to check all over for eggs. Not only that, but she will brood on literally nothing. She just wants to sit.
2) Constantly removing hen from nesting boxes: Firstly, I do this whenever I see her. All that happens is her getting frustrated and she can concentrate on nothing but getting back to the hen house. Secondly, my whole family either works or goes to school, so we can't always be out there with her, removing her from the hen house.
3) Closing/removing nests: I have tried this. I did everything I could to remove and block off all nesting possibilities. She still is insistent on sitting wherever. She'll even brood on a bar!
4) Ice: It's recommended to do this in warm weather, but I live in stubborn old Utah where winter refuses to go away. It's warming up slowly, but I haven't had the chance to do this. I don't know when it'll be warm enough and I don't know if I can afford to wait that long.
5) Solitary confinement/"Chicken prison": There are so many reasons why I don't want to do this. The main reason being I only have 2 bantams, both of which have been banished - for lack of a better word - from the regular hens (long story) and need to be separated. Therefore, if I removed my silkie, the other bantam would be all alone. If this is my only option, I could try to work something out, but I'd rather it not come to this.
Does anyone have any other options that might work?? I'm desperate. She's my favorite chicken, and she's not been acting like herself due to this broodiness.
It's also affecting our other bantam, who is so attached to my silkie that she'll stand and watch my silkie brood, waiting for her to be done (which she never is).
