How to deal w/ breaking a broody hen that's still laying eggs?

[Bckpkrs]

How do you balance the need to have a broody hen in chicken jail keeping her off her nest with her biological needs if she still needs to actually lay an egg and not 'just brood'?

So a couple of days ago we noticed our 42 wk Cuckoo Maran turning broody. The first afternoon I kept pulling out of the box. Yesterday, she came out of the box with a little hesitation for breakfast scratch when I opened the coop, but was back in her nest within a couple of hours. She's been laying fairly regularly. Since I figured she may actually be laying an egg, I'd let here stay in the box for 30-45 minutes, then check to see if she laid, then I'd pull her out of the box and set her in our run. *repeat* - So I proceeded to build a chicken jail. I'd let her out for a few minutes every three hours - and if she headed to the nest box, I'd giver her a little time on her nest; no egg = pulled out & back in jail. For her 5 o'clock release, she RAN to the egg box like a human with Montezuma's Revenge running to the toilet. A half-hour later I found her sitting on an egg. *(Egg removed and back to chicken jail.) I let her out of jail at night so she could roost in the coop after the others had gone up and I put cardboard over the nesting boxes so she couldn't spend the night in her nest. This morning, she didn't want to leave the coop, and after morning scratch went right back to the coop, so she's back in jail.

I set her jail in the run but covered it so she can't see the coop; her two other flock-mates are hanging out with her and she's very quiet and accepting of her jail, so I guess that's a plus, right?

As a new chicken owner, I'd love to hear from the experts. (Yes, I read a ton on the 118 pg. Breaking a Broody Hen thread but didn't quite see question this covered.)

Thanks in advance for any tips, suggestions, or advice.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Some of mine go broody before laying their last eggs. I put them in the broody breaking pen anyways for 3-5 days, and I collect any eggs they lay in the pen.

 

[Yardmom]

It doesn't sound like you have that many hens. You can just pick eggs so she doesn't have anything to sit on. Are you sure she is broody? I have hens that sit a couple of hours when they lay. One will go back and attack anyone who goes to sit where she laid. (My poor duck keeps getting attacked by her). Broody would be sitting night and day.

 

[Bckpkrs]

It doesn't sound like you have that many hens. You can just pick eggs so she doesn't have anything to sit on. Are you sure she is broody? I have hens that sit a couple of hours when they lay. One will go back and attack anyone who goes to sit where she laid. (My poor duck keeps getting attacked by her). Broody would be sitting night and day.

Thanks, yes; just three hens. She's been very normal since we've had her (just over a month) and would stay out of the coop all day unless she was laying. As of a couple days ago, all she wants to do is be in the nest box, and if she can't get into the coop she paces and tries intensely to get into the coop/nest box. If given a chance, I'm pretty sure she'd sit and stay 24/7, but from what I've read, getting an early jump on breaking a broody hen can mean the difference of coping for days or if not acting right away, her broodiness can last for weeks -- so I'm trying to err on the side of acting early.

It was a very sudden shift between being out of the coop all day and not wanting to be anyplace but on her nest, so yeah, I'm gambling she's gone/going broody. (From a rookies perspective.)

Cheers!

 

[Bckpkrs]

Some of mine go broody before laying their last eggs. I put them in the broody breaking pen anyways for 3-5 days, and I collect any eggs they lay in the pen.

Just curious - what do you mean by "laying her last eggs" - like at the end of her egg production cycle? I'm guessing at 42 weeks that's (hopefully) not the case.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Just curious - what do you mean by "laying her last eggs" - like at the end of her egg production cycle? I'm guessing at 42 weeks that's (hopefully) not the case.

When a hen is going broody they are laying a clutch worth of eggs with the intent to hatch them. Some start clucking and guarding their eggs before they switch from laying to setting. Those I break as soon as I hear the clucking. So by laying the last eggs I mean the last they intend to lay before switching to setting those eggs.

 

[Bckpkrs]

When a hen is going broody they are laying a clutch worth of eggs with the intent to hatch them. Some start clucking and guarding their eggs before they switch from laying to setting. Those I break as soon as I hear the clucking. So by laying the last eggs I mean the last they intend to lay before switching to setting those eggs.

Gotcha! Thx. Appreciate the extra info.

 

[rosemarythyme]

So one note: I wouldn't be testing her every 3 hours. Once you crate her, with food and water and preferably in line of sight with the others (so don't cover it up too much) - she stays in day and night for at least 2-3 days. If on day 3 you notice she's starting to act a less broody (less cranky, less puffy, less tik-tik-tik chirping), you can try letting her out briefly to test if she returns to the nest. She should not return at any point.

If she fails, back in the crate another 24 hrs. Test again. Fail, 24 more hours. Repeat.

I usually catch my broodies early enough that yes, they still have eggs in their system on the way out, so in that case they'll lay in confinement. Just pick up any egg(s) from there.

 

[Bckpkrs]

So one note: I wouldn't be testing her every 3 hours. Once you crate her, with food and water and preferably in line of sight with the others (so don't cover it up too much) - she stays in day and night for at least 2-3 days. If on day 3 you notice she's starting to act a less broody (less cranky, less puffy, less tik-tik-tik chirping), you can try letting her out briefly to test if she returns to the nest. She should not return at any point.

If she fails, back in the crate another 24 hrs. Test again. Fail, 24 more hours. Repeat.

I usually catch my broodies early enough that yes, they still have eggs in their system on the way out, so in that case they'll lay in confinement. Just pick up any egg(s) from there.

Thank you. I'll put that into action tomorrow. My concern about leaving her out in the cage overnight would be the neighborhood (suburban) critters that go scurry in the night upsetting her outside the relative safety of the closed coop.

Is it that much better to leave in jail or could she continue to roost with the others hens at night and toss her back in jail early in the morning? Would that potentially drag it out much longer?

*not sure where I'd put her at might if not in the coop.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Thank you. I'll put that into action tomorrow. My concern about leaving her out in the cage overnight would be the neighborhood (suburban) critters that go scurry in the night upsetting her outside the relative safety of the closed coop.

Is it that much better to leave in jail or could she continue to roost with the others hens at night and toss her back in jail early in the morning? Would that potentially drag it out much longer?

Fair enough - if safety is a concern and coop doesn't have space for the crate (mine doesn't), let her go roost/place her on the roost for the night, and once you're up the next morning, go pry her out of the nest and put her back in the crate. Would rather take an extra day or two to break her rather than risk a predator getting to her.