INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

Hello,
I have a 7 month old Buff Orpintong that has been broody for about 3 weeks. We don't have a rooster so no point to let her go broody. We have been unsuccessfully trying to discouraging broodiness but we haven't have any luck. We collect the eggs as soon as possible and we tried to get her out of the nest as often as possible. When I get her out of the nest she does eat and do her business for a few minutes and then she wants to go back to the nest. Sometimes she lays in an empty nest. How much longer does chickens stay broody? Any advice is appreciated.
A determined broody can be hard "to break." If not overly determined little things like putting them outside in the bright sunshine (summer) or cold temps (winter) as well as continually removing eggs & kicking them off the nest will help. Broody hens want a quiet dark place where they can nestle down. Try to give them the opposite.

Many people can break a broody by keeping her in a cage with a wire mesh floor for a few days to a week. Feed & water as normal. The idea is the air flow will come from below & cool off her belly which can reduce her urge to set. If it's a hot summer day (above 85'F), I give a cool bath (not icy cold, but not a normal warm bath) and let the hen air dry.

I've been able to stop broody hens from sitting on the nest, but it's not like they go right back to laying. Often they (my perpetual broodies) continue a reg daily routine for a couple weeks...... and then go broody again. Many times, they decide to get back at me by molting.... which also means no eggs for a while. If I stop an occasional (once a year) broody hen from nesting, then she may skip raising chicks that year. Whether I let the hen go broody or try to stop her, either way I'll be down eggs for about the same amount of time. It's not hard for me to obtain some fertile eggs, so I usually just give the hen some eggs. Since you don't have a rooster, you may want to ask some local chicken people if they can spare or sell you a few fertile eggs.
 
A determined broody can be hard "to break." If not overly determined little things like putting them outside in the bright sunshine (summer) or cold temps (winter) as well as continually removing eggs & kicking them off the nest will help. Broody hens want a quiet dark place where they can nestle down. Try to give them the opposite.

Many people can break a broody by keeping her in a cage with a wire mesh floor for a few days to a week. Feed & water as normal. The idea is the air flow will come from below & cool off her belly which can reduce her urge to set. If it's a hot summer day (above 85'F), I give a cool bath (not icy cold, but not a normal warm bath) and let the hen air dry.

I've been able to stop broody hens from sitting on the nest, but it's not like they go right back to laying. Often they (my perpetual broodies) continue a reg daily routine for a couple weeks...... and then go broody again. Many times, they decide to get back at me by molting.... which also means no eggs for a while. If I stop an occasional (once a year) broody hen from nesting, then she may skip raising chicks that year. Whether I let the hen go broody or try to stop her, either way I'll be down eggs for about the same amount of time. It's not hard for me to obtain some fertile eggs, so I usually just give the hen some eggs. Since you don't have a rooster, you may want to ask some local chicken people if they can spare or sell you a few fertile eggs.
Thanks so much for the information Faraday40, I have heard that buff orpington can be very broody and I have two, one of which is the one being broody. I really hope this broodiness doesn't happen very often. My worry is not about not getting eggs from her, I can spare not getting eggs from one chicken, although getting fresh eggs is wonderful. My worry is about her well-being, since she has not been leaving the nest for long her claws has been getting very long. I am wondering if I could trim her nails? Has anyone done that?

Thanks
 
The Rural King on the east side in Evansville had chicks in but no RIR’s so I didn’t pick any up but there were Marans, Golden Lace Wyandotte’s, And black leghorns.

ENABLER, ENABLER, RUN AWAY!! ;)
enabler.jpg
 
Our single blue egg-laying hen is 6+ years old now (cream legbar). Her steady laying days are few and far between. I told DW we should hatch some if her eggs if she ever lays again. DW didn't say no, but she did tell me she doesn't want to have chicks in the house again.

As if it were a miracle, that hen laid an egg two days after I said that. I put her egg, and 2-3 others in the incubator. I was so pleased with the perfectness of my plan.

Then, as if one miracle wasn't enough, the next day, she laid another egg. Of course, I put that egg and 2-3 others in the incubator.

NOW, the incubator is completely filled with 9 eggs. DW hasn't said a word...
:woot:woot:woot
 
Thanks so much for the information Faraday40, I have heard that buff orpington can be very broody and I have two, one of which is the one being broody. I really hope this broodiness doesn't happen very often. My worry is not about not getting eggs from her, I can spare not getting eggs from one chicken, although getting fresh eggs is wonderful. My worry is about her well-being, since she has not been leaving the nest for long her claws has been getting very long. I am wondering if I could trim her nails? Has anyone done that?

Thanks
It's normal for a hen to lose some weight while broody. Just monitor her & make sure she doesn't get weak. You could put her into a "broody apartment" dog crate or other type of cage with food & water next to her. Of course the move to a new location may break her broodiness.

I do trim nails of some hens, but I recommend waiting until she's no longer broody. She won't like all the fussing at this point in time & it may cause extra unnecessary stress. Better to wait until you have your normal loving hen back. Trimming nails is the same as with dogs. Snip a little & avoid the quick. Have cornstarch handy in case you accidentally cut too much.

We have a lot of orps. None of my lavender orps have ever gone broody. I have a big 9 lb blue orp who's broody maybe 2xs per year. She's clumsy and could break eggs or squish chicks, so not a good choice for incubating expensive eggs. However, she's OK as a mama and has enough room to keep 15-20 chicks warm. My silkie is the opposite. She's very determined about hatching but sort of scatter-brained after the chicks hatch. Her chicks must follow her or she might wander off to peck at something shiny. Eventually, she always comes back to look for them. Then there's my queen broody - a black bantam orp - who can go broody 4- 5xs per year. She can only fit 7-8 LF eggs under her, but she's great at both hatching & mothering. Her chicks are never more than 12" away and she keeps them tightly controlled. She'll adopt new chicks on hatch day - but after that, all other birds are intruders and will be severely pecked.

Our best broody: "Cookie"
When this pic was taken, she hatched one egg..... which I had removed from the incubator on day 15. From her point of view, it only took her about a week! Then I kept slipping the rest of the incubator chicks under her as they hatched. She must have thought she was SuperHen. She managed to hatch over 20 chicks in 6 days from one big egg!
IMG_9339.JPG
 
Our single blue egg-laying hen is 6+ years old now (cream legbar). Her steady laying days are few and far between. I told DW we should hatch some if her eggs if she ever lays again. DW didn't say no, but she did tell me she doesn't want to have chicks in the house again.

As if it were a miracle, that hen laid an egg two days after I said that. I put her egg, and 2-3 others in the incubator. I was so pleased with the perfectness of my plan.

Then, as if one miracle wasn't enough, the next day, she laid another egg. Of course, I put that egg and 2-3 others in the incubator.

NOW, the incubator is completely filled with 9 eggs. DW hasn't said a word...
:woot:woot:woot

:bow
I'm taking notes........

Our incubators are still in storage, but I already had a few people contact me about chicks. Also, I have 2 schools scheduled for an embryology unit in April. I just informed DH that I'll be ordering some extra eggs again this year. I'm also planting the idea of starting the hatching a little early.

On top of my own little projects, DS is asking to build his own incubator for 4H and DD is hooked on her "useless chickens." It's going to be a crazy busy spring!
 
It's normal for a hen to lose some weight while broody. Just monitor her & make sure she doesn't get weak. You could put her into a "broody apartment" dog crate or other type of cage with food & water next to her. Of course the move to a new location may break her broodiness.

I do trim nails of some hens, but I recommend waiting until she's no longer broody. She won't like all the fussing at this point in time & it may cause extra unnecessary stress. Better to wait until you have your normal loving hen back. Trimming nails is the same as with dogs. Snip a little & avoid the quick. Have cornstarch handy in case you accidentally cut too much.

We have a lot of orps. None of my lavender orps have ever gone broody. I have a big 9 lb blue orp who's broody maybe 2xs per year. She's clumsy and could break eggs or squish chicks, so not a good choice for incubating expensive eggs. However, she's OK as a mama and has enough room to keep 15-20 chicks warm. My silkie is the opposite. She's very determined about hatching but sort of scatter-brained after the chicks hatch. Her chicks must follow her or she might wander off to peck at something shiny. Eventually, she always comes back to look for them. Then there's my queen broody - a black bantam orp - who can go broody 4- 5xs per year. She can only fit 7-8 LF eggs under her, but she's great at both hatching & mothering. Her chicks are never more than 12" away and she keeps them tightly controlled. She'll adopt new chicks on hatch day - but after that, all other birds are intruders and will be severely pecked.

Our best broody: "Cookie"
When this pic was taken, she hatched one egg..... which I had removed from the incubator on day 15. From her point of view, it only took her about a week! Then I kept slipping the rest of the incubator chicks under her as they hatched. She must have thought she was SuperHen. She managed to hatch over 20 chicks in 6 days from one big egg!
View attachment 1666755
I really enjoyed reading your post thank you. What a beautiful hen you got and the chicks are adorable
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom