How to Break a Broody Hen

[JKRopee]

Good News! After the garage treatment, my hen Louise gave up her broodiness! I don't know why but I am thrilled!! She free-ranges with her sisters all day, at night she goes into the coop and right into one of the nest boxes. If I cover or remove the box, she just sits where it should be, but first thing in the morning, when I open the coop, she comes out with the other girls and goes about her day with no more broodiness. Best of all, I think she laid an egg yesterday for the first time in weeks (the shells on her eggs tend to be a little lighter than my other two girls). For me, this is a great Christmas present I was so worried about her. Now, waiting for spring to enlarge the coop and bring in 2 or 3 more hens. . .

 

[aldarita]

Good News! After the garage treatment, my hen Louise gave up her broodiness! I don't know why but I am thrilled!! She free-ranges with her sisters all day, at night she goes into the coop and right into one of the nest boxes. If I cover or remove the box, she just sits where it should be, but first thing in the morning, when I open the coop, she comes out with the other girls and goes about her day with no more broodiness. Best of all, I think she laid an egg yesterday for the first time in weeks (the shells on her eggs tend to be a little lighter than my other two girls). For me, this is a great Christmas present I was so worried about her. Now, waiting for spring to enlarge the coop and bring in 2 or 3 more hens. . .

Congrats! It is such a relief to see them back to normal, isn't it? How long did you leave Louise in the buster cage?. I am so glad that this treatment works, I like it better that the iced water treatment. Hopefully she will never get broody again.

 

[JKRopee]

I am just thrilled! She spent about 36 hours, day/night/day. When I got home from work the second day, she just looked terrible, depressed is the only way I can describe it. So, I decided at that moment, I'd rather have her broody than depressed. . . so out she went, and she isn't looking back!. I didn't even consider the water treatment, just the thought of it freaked me out. . .

I did e-mail a local author (Ashley English) who wrote a book about backyard chickens, she wrote back the same evening and suggested I get a couple of ceramic eggs and put them in a nesting box for her to sit on, then just let her be and she will come around. She also explained that when hens are broody, they will naturally eat and drink much less. Luckily she snapped out of it before I had to give her the ceramic eggs! Hope no one gets broody again for awhile, its too hard on me!

 

[Sunny Side Up]

That author is correct in saying that broody hens eat/drink less than others, they don't exert as much energy so they need less fuel. But I don't understand the rationale of giving them ceramic eggs to set upon, and hope they'll "come around" on their own. I think you should either give them eggs to incubate or break their broody spell. Each hen is different, but some will set on an empty nest, and would stay there for months unless someone intervened. I think nature has designed hens to endure a 3-week period of broodiness, but a longer set could compromise their health & well-being.

 

[jahaworth89]

I have a hen who is normally very active, but this morning when my husband went to let our ladies out to free range she stayed in the coop. I went out to check on her and nothing seemed physically wrong with her and she laid in my lap and went to sleep. I let her stay there for a few minutes and then took her back the yard, she is moving slowly, not in a real hurry to go anywhere fast, and now two of my other hens are "picking" on her. I was wondering if this was brooding or not? Ive only had my ladies for 5 months and none of them have laid eggs yet, any advice for a newbie?

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Every hen can be different, but typical broodiness is characterized by the hen's strong desire to stay on her nest all day & night, if you take them off they'll try to go right back (maybe take a quick break to eat/drink/poop), and many will fluff up their feathers and growl or peck at you if you reach for them. Mama hens act a lot like Mama bears! They will often have bare patches of skin on either side of their keel-bone (the middle of the breast), these are "broody patches" and help keep the eggs moist as well as warm. I think it also helps the hen to feel what is happening inside her eggs.

Your hen sounds unwell, it could be just the weather or something she ate, could be a symptom of something more serious. I would isolate her for her sake so the others don't peck at her, and also to keep it from spreading to the others. Provide a cozy place that is dimly lit and warm, give water with something in it (vitamins, electrolytes, ACV, red cell, even table sugar or Gatorade) and some nourishing food like scrambled egg.

Watch her for other symptoms & check on the Emergencies section to see what it could be. I hope she gets well soon!

 

[JKRopee]

Please post how she is doing! I am new to keeping chickens and have lots to learn - good and not so good. I'll keep good thoughts for you and your flock!

 

[chinzilla]

While we were on vacation we came back to find our bantam Cochin, cruella, brooding. I took her eggs away from her but then my rir, peep, would go lay and cruella would sit on peeps eggs! Ahhh! I had two against working against me.

Then peep stopped laying because cruella was hogging the nest box.

After dealing with this for just over a week I decided I have to break her because we want our eggs andno sense in letting her hatch BC I'll be out of town for a lot of next month and wouldn't be here for the chicks.

So I busted out the wire cage and put the cage upside down when I put her in it to give her more grip on the bottom... Would you believe she was so determined to get back to her nest she pushed herself through the small opening on the top?!?

Flipped the cage right way up, put it on some cinder blocks in the run so she can still see everyone and be in the sun.

Here's to hoping!

 

[Rhode Island]

Not long ago my Australorp went broody. I am going to see if this method works for me.

 

[chinzilla]

The method worked! It's been 48 hours so I let her out and she hasn't gone back in to brood! Wahoo!