how long will my broody chicken sit on a stone if i just leave her to it

[sonandsal]

Mrs frizzle (my bantam frizzle) has has 2 batches of chickens before and has been broody for at
least 2 weeks. She sits on a small stone in the nest each day. I lift her out every day for some food and although she growles she does eat and then has a dust bath in the sun then goes back to the nest. If i leave her to it will she just give up in a week or so or do i need to seperate her from the nest and isolate her for a couple of days. A problem is that we are going on holidays in 6 weeks and will be away for a couple of months. My neighbours will look after them but i don't want her broody then. Any suggestions please

 

[Cyprus]

If you're not going to hatch eggs under her, you should break her broodiness.

 

[Dani4Hedgies]

you need to put her in a broody breaker box and break her of being broody. To do this put a wire cage or wire dog kennel on two cement blocks so that air flows below her and place her in the kennel hook on a water and feeder bowl and keep her in this for 3-4 days and this will break her of being broody.

 

[Redhead Rae]

Broody hens eat about 1/3rd what they need to eat to sustain themselves. This is alright for 3-6 weeks, but beyond that it is EXTREMELY detrimental to their health. They can even brood themselves to death eventually.

 

[sonandsal]

Thank you all ill sort that tomorrow

 

[aart]

If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, best to break her broodiness promptly.
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.

 

[Mosey2003]

I agree with aart. I have a kennel just like that (I bought it cheap without a tray) and I cut a piece of hardware cloth to fit the bottom and zip-tied it on in a few places. I had a broody in the peak summer heat last year, set up the cage on blocks in the barn and plopped her in with food and water. Waited two days and started checking, for three more days she would growl when I would reach in. On day six, she was up and perky like normal, so I put her back in the run and all was well.