I am writing an article about chickens going broody! Would love some input!

[MegsEggsx]

Heyyyy,
As said in the title I am writing an article about chickens going broody, it is mainly about what to do if you don't want them to hatch eggs. I'd love if anyone with any advice, input, or experience to share their ideas! I will quote people. Also, any pictures of broody chickens, broody cages, or anything of the like will be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[MegsEggsx]

Forgot to add: Suggestions of FAQs are really great too!

 

[aart]

First, make sure she's broody.

Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, does she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck(ticking bomb) sound on her way back to the nest?

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

My experience goes about like this: After her setting for 3 days and nights in the nest (or as soon as I know they are broody), I put her in a wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller wire(1x2) on the bottom but no bedding, set up on a couple of 4x4's right in the coop or run with feed and water.

After 48 hours in the crate, let her out of crate very near roosting time(30-60 mins) if she goes to roost great, if she goes to nest put her back in crate.

Tho not necessary, a chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken to give the feet a break from the wire floor.

 

[arishoks]

To end my hens broody-ness I lock them out of the coop during the day because I don't have anything to put a single hen into really. Keeping them out of where they want to nest for a few days seems to do the trick!

 

[3KillerBs]

I just this morning wrote up my outdoor broody breaker made from a wire dog crate.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/outdoor-broody-breaker.76592/

 

[MegsEggsx]

Thanks, everyone for your help! I am doing some more research right now to make sure I am getting all my facts right!

 

[Banana01]

I have one broody hen now who is on day three sitting on her eggs. Maybe I don't understand what breaking broody means, because if I don't want them to be broody I can remove the eggs. I can close my boxes to keep other hens out, but I haven't had to do that yet.

Their boxes are shaded and dry, and they seem to like them. I built them so that each hen can get their own private box, and so far it is working for three broods. After the eggs hatch they continue to live in the same box with their babies until the babies outgrow it and move to the adult house.

A huge disadvantage is that until the hen stays with the eggs all day and night, because of rats I have to bring the eggs into my house at night, and put them back outside in the morning. If I don't bring them in at night, I would find empty eggshells all the time in the morning.

Here are a couple other of my brood boxes. They were thrown together, but only four of the eggs hatched in the cardboard box because another hen sort of sabotaged that one. These eggs are dead and I am removing them today. The box will remain since the mother is living in it now, but it will be gone after she leaves since I discovered the vegatable crates work well stacked on each other at an angle. The other box is a veggie crate inside a rice bag for warmth and protection from moisture.

This is the hen that lives in the cardboard box.

My very first brood box was open and inside my house because I had not built any coops outside. It was comfortable for the hen but not ideal since the chickens were inside. This was from September and I think one of my first broods. Since then all the chickens have been moved outside.

Building the broods has been a process but it's coming along as more space is needed it takes time to build things around their biological needs.

This is inside my house where my ducks just hatched four eggs. She was broody for a month inside the house. The ducks sleep here on the ground now with the babies, I close the male off at night. On the shelf sleeps my blind chickens because I bring them in and out at night. Sorry I didn't have time to sweep the floor for the picture today. The duck made her nest super cozy with her down.

 

[Anime2lover]

You

Heyyyy,
As said in the title I am writing an article about chickens going broody, it is mainly about what to do if you don't want them to hatch eggs. I'd love if anyone with any advice, input, or experience to share their ideas! I will quote people. Also, any pictures of broody chickens, broody cages, or anything of the like will be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

You n help to prevent broodyness by collecting the eggs really early and not letting them add up in the nest boxes. You can test for broodyness to. As mentioned above, you can take her from the nest. She will fluff out and kinda waddle about a little bit, making low sounds, maybe eat and then return to the nest if she is broody. You can also do the egg test. Place an egg in front of the broody in the box and see if she rolls it under her for incubation.

 

[aart]

Maybe I don't understand what breaking broody means, because if I don't want them to be broody I can remove the eggs.

A bird the is truly broody will sit on nothing.

You can also do the egg test. Place an egg in front of the broody in the box and see if she rolls it under her for incubation.

Even a non-broody will do this.

 

[Yardmom]

I think it is important for people to understand that a broody hen will sit on the eggs she has, or on the eggs she is given. An alternative if you don't want a dozen chicks, but a few would be ok is tor remove her current eggs and
give the broody hen two eggs of your choosing.