Help! New chicken owner!

[Jman45]

so about 2-3 months ago I bought 4 Dominique chickens ( 1 roo and three hens) they are now about 7-8 months old and I’m beginning to worry they will not set on a clutch of eggs I have heard mixed messages about their broodines about how sometimes they are terrible setters and some say they are very broody and protective mothers! I really want one of my hens to set and right now I have 8 eggs in the nesting box to try and get them to set one them! Just got those eggs out there today so I wasn’t expecting them to set. Someone please give me advice, is if because of their age their not setting? Breed? Do I need to switch breeds? Buy a broody Dominique hen? Please help!

 

[ChickNanny13]

You can't make a pullet/hen be broody. You can't make them set either.
Where did you get the eggs from? You may need to get yourself an incubator.

 

[Jman45]

the eggs are from the hens themselves

 

[Olivekat07]

You can't make a pullet/hen be broody. You can't make them set either.
Where did you get the eggs from? You may need to get yourself an incubator.

I agree, get your self an incubator, they just randomly go broody, you can’t make them go broody.

 

[Jman45]

Do you think that as they age they will become more broody?

 

[featherhead007]

use duct tape! never mind.. only kidding

 

[pennyJo1960]

You cannot make a hen go broody it will not happen sorry

 

[sylviethecochin]

It's not really a good idea to set pullet eggs as the layers're still sorting out their reproductive systems. Further, setting at 7-8 months is something I would expect of a Bantam cochin or a breeder-quality silkie, not of any laying-type birds.

They may get broodier as they get older. But some birds do go broody and make good mothers and some just don't. You can't make any chicken go broody.

There are some very good articles on here about how to make a homemade incubator, if you're interested...

 

[Jman45]

Thanks for your advice! I may just incubate some out and raise them to like me

 

[MROO]

You can't force a hen to go broody. They'll set when they're ready. My bantams are just over a year - and we've only just now had the first hen hatch out her first clutch. Because it was her first - and she's so young - her first attempt backfired after just a few days. That was a real heart-breaker,

If you're really "set" on hatching, you'll need either an incubator or a broody hen. I recommend the 'bator because, by the time you go the quarantine and integration route with a new hen, your own girls will likely be thinking about families on their own.

Give 'em time. They'll get around to it ... and be better mamas for it. In the meantime, enjoy those eggs. They're delicious!