HELP I have a 2nd Broody Hen

[jpryorx2]

Let me start with a background on my flock. I have 9 hens, no rooster (2 mystic merins, 2 white leg horns and 5 amerirocks all about a year old) I had a broody hen a mystic, sat in the nesting box for almost a month (about a month ago) we had been tossing her out side, locked out of coop so she couldnt get to the nesting box but had access to water and food and she would eat and drink when out. but then she plucked her chest bare we would put frozen water bottles in the nesting box nothing I read online was working so Talked to the poultry guy at our local TSC, he said if she was being that bull headed for that long already the only thing to get he to stop was to get her a chick... they didnt have any so we kept trying then another store had some but we had to buy 4. so we bought 4 new chicks... got one under her but we didnt think we could safly get any more in with her. so we are raising in a seprate coop for now.
Now this week we have a 2nd hen getting broody am Amerirock, we have been retrieving eggs multiply times a day, tossing her out, and last night she had the chick from broody #1 in the nesting box with her. tonight I went to check on them at dusk and she again had the chick, this time cornered in the nesting box under her wing. chick was making all kinds of noise like it was not happy to be in there, and as soon as the hen looked up to see what was looking at her it escaped out of the nesting box ( the roof of my nesting box opens to get the eggs out.) and she has been pecking at the other here and there when they are all out. So for tonight I have locked her out of the coop, she is in a very secure run that has hardware wire even under the floor. she is not happy to be locked out but I am worried for the others safety.
So my question is,
1) Is it normal for a hen to(for lack of better word) "kidnap" another hens chick? We tried putting her near one of the other chicks near her and she tried pecking at it so we didnt think that was a safe option.
2) Is there anything else I can do to brake her from being broody?
3) Would having a rooster help with this?
Any and all advise would be great at this time as this is our first summer of them being old enough for this and I don't want to have to do this every year.

 

[Yardmom]

Some members use elevated cages to break broodies. I don't have experience with this as we give our broodies a couple eggs. Most broodies just want to sit on eggs, but I have had a hen want another's chick. I got lucky and they co parented. I don't think this is a normal thing. Hopefully you can find a way to break the broody.

 

[jpryorx2]

Some members use elevated cages to break broodies. I don't have experience with this as we give our broodies a couple eggs. Most broodies just want to sit on eggs, but I have had a hen want another's chick. I got lucky and they co parented. I don't think this is a normal thing. Hopefully you can find a way to break the broody.

Thanks. I don't have room in my coop for a broody cage. or anyplace in door to put one.
and at this point I am going to have to put an addition on our coop as soon as the chicks are big enough to go in with the hens.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

You might try cooling her breast and belly, and the area where he legs meet her body, in a cool bath, and then restricting her from going back into the coop. You may have to do this a couple of times a day for several days. It really would be best if you could put her in something like a wire-bottomed dog crate to keep her underparts cool for at least three days, and then release her and see if she tries to go back to the nest. Broodiness is hormonal. They don't care if they have fertile eggs, no eggs, or golf balls.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I hate to be the breaker of bad news but if you don't have room for a broody breaker you definitely don't have room to be adding chicks without expanding both the coop and run. Unless you're planning on rehoming the chicks once the hen weans them?

If you're expanding (I think you implied that was the plan, but not sure) then make sure to expand big enough to be able to fit a broody breaker cage in the coop or run. With the cage the broody would've likely broken in 2-3 days and you'd be back to "normal" without the need to fuss with tossing birds out of nests and such.

You absolutely do not have room for a rooster right now.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

How big is the coop, in square feet? And the run, in square feet? Please understand we are not trying to be critical, but rather, helpful. When I first got chickens I see didn't have the first notion of their needs. I have since learned that for their best health I needed to provide them a minimum of 4 sq ft per bird in the coop, and at least 10 sq ft per bird in the run. Failure to meet these requirements results in hens pecking each other, fighting, cannibalizing, crushed chicks, stomped eggs, plucked feathers, some birds not having a safe place to roost, reduced production ... The list goes on. Adequate space, adequate food, water, grit and oyster shell, and adequate ventilation are the bare minimum requirements for healthy, happy, productive chickens.

 

[SilkySilkie]

what i sometimes do when i have too many broody hens is give them a cold bath it helps them and i keep them separate