Let her be broody?

[Ms.tiamaria]

Will a broody hen snap out of it eventually if you let nature take its course? Or do I need to intervene?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

No most often they won't and you do need to intervene.. or they may sit for months on end with no reward... that is if she doesn't have fertile eggs.

If her eggs are fertile andf chicks hatch then she will snap put of it about 6 weeks (give or take) after hatch.

You can also adopt her some sexed hatchery chicks if you have room and want more.

Good luck!

 

[PirateGirl]

Sometimes it's easier to break them than others. I put a cap on it of about a week of me taking minor steps before I get more aggressive about it. So I might have a week of me moving her off the nest and then locking her in the run for a few hours a day. Sometimes that's all it takes, being locked away from the nest for a few days. Other times it is much more difficult to get them to quit and you must be more diligent about your efforts.

 

[rebrascora]

If nature took it's course, she would be sitting on fertile eggs and when they hatched she would leave the nest and raise the chicks. Humankind has already intervened in the "natural" process by keeping her in a coop, probably without access to a rooster for fertile eggs and/or removed eggs that have been laid, so she is now left in a pretty unnatural situation. Letting her hatch eggs and/or raise chicks would be the kindest thing. Breaking her of her broodiness, the next kindest option to my thinking. Letting her sit for months with no hope of a result just wears her down and eats into her body reserves.

 

[aart]

You'll need to decide if you want her to hatch out some chicks, and how you will 'manage' it.
-Do you have, or can you get, some fertile eggs?
-Do you have the space needed? Both for more chickens and she may need to be separated by wire from the rest of the flock.
-Do you have a plan on what to do with the inevitable males? Rehome, butcher, keep in separate 'bachelor pad'?

If you decide to let her hatch out some fertile eggs, this is a great thread for reference and to ask questions.
It's a long one but just start reading the first few pages, then browse thru some more at random.
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/496101/broody-hen-thread


If you don't want her to hatch out chicks, best to break her broodiness promptly.
My experience goes about 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 or run with feed and water.

I used to let them out a couple times a day, but now just once a day in the evening(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.
Chunk of 2x4 for a 'roost' was added to crate floor after pic was taken.

 

[Ms.tiamaria]

She has been broody for 1 week. For the first 3 days the only efforts I made were not letting her have access to any eggs, and putting her on the roost at bedtime. For the past few days she has been locked out of the henhouse except for bedtime. She just finds a place in the run to sit on her imaginary babies, but she has been getting up and being more active recently. I really hate to nail her. Her sister would lose it if I separated them.

Sometimes it's easier to break them than others. I put a cap on it of about a week of me taking minor steps before I get more aggressive about it. So I might have a week of me moving her off the nest and then locking her in the run for a few hours a day. Sometimes that's all it takes, being locked away from the nest for a few days. Other times it is much more difficult to get them to quit and you must be more diligent about your efforts.

 

[Ms.tiamaria]

Jail her, not nail her!