My Ticking Time Bomb! Broody Ameraucana...

Apr 30, 2018
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Tooele, UT
My girl, Wizzygig, who is an Ameraucana, has gone broody 3 times in the past 7 weeks. Into the Broody Buster the first time for 3 nights, despite a very vocal protest, then let out on the fourth day. Things went back to normal; only going into the nest box to lay. 1 1/2 weeks later, she went broody again. Back into the Broody Buster, more vocal protests, for 4 nights this time, let out on the fifth day. Same again...back to normal; laying again. One week passes with normalcy, then went broody again! I put her back into the Broody Buster yesterday - clearly very upset! and I told my husband that I thought with all of this broody breaking, I thought she may go mad or at least her temperament might get altered in a bad way - so I told him about previous posts that I have done regarding my broody hens which many suggested I simply get some fertile eggs and let her go for it. He agreed in that this constant breaking is stressful for him, me, and Wizzygig. While I went to pick up fertile eggs this morning, my DH changed the Broody Buster into a space she could settle down into when I returned with these eggs.

After putting the eggs on one of the Excelsior pads I use for the nest boxes, I place her in with the eggs...She didn't make any noise but just stared at the eggs and didn't settle in on them. But she was inside where the eggs were.

I checked on her about an hour later - the Excelsior pad was kicked up like she had "prepared" it but the eggs had been pushed off of the pad AND she was pacing back and forth in front of her Brooder Nesting cage. Obviously, making her low, "cluck", "cluck", "cluck" but at least not making her normal, very vocal protests when in the cage as a Broody Buster.

I just went out again to check on her...pacing back and forth in the front of the cage like she's going mad/crazy, not showing any interest on sitting on the eggs, still "cluck, cluck, clucking" in her low tone.

I do know she is broody; I've gone down this road with her a couple of times as well as with another one of my girls (thank God, not at the same time!)...on the nest for two days & nights straight. When approached she would growl, all of her feathers would puff straight out all over her body and would peck at my hand when I put my hand by her.

I know she wants to get to the nest box that is her favorite so she can just brood there but that is not an option now.

I'm at my wits end because I just don't know what to do...
 
My girl, Wizzygig, who is an Ameraucana, has gone broody 3 times in the past 7 weeks. Into the Broody Buster the first time for 3 nights, despite a very vocal protest, then let out on the fourth day. Things went back to normal; only going into the nest box to lay. 1 1/2 weeks later, she went broody again. Back into the Broody Buster, more vocal protests, for 4 nights this time, let out on the fifth day. Same again...back to normal; laying again. One week passes with normalcy, then went broody again! I put her back into the Broody Buster yesterday - clearly very upset! and I told my husband that I thought with all of this broody breaking, I thought she may go mad or at least her temperament might get altered in a bad way - so I told him about previous posts that I have done regarding my broody hens which many suggested I simply get some fertile eggs and let her go for it. He agreed in that this constant breaking is stressful for him, me, and Wizzygig. While I went to pick up fertile eggs this morning, my DH changed the Broody Buster into a space she could settle down into when I returned with these eggs.

After putting the eggs on one of the Excelsior pads I use for the nest boxes, I place her in with the eggs...She didn't make any noise but just stared at the eggs and didn't settle in on them. But she was inside where the eggs were.

I checked on her about an hour later - the Excelsior pad was kicked up like she had "prepared" it but the eggs had been pushed off of the pad AND she was pacing back and forth in front of her Brooder Nesting cage. Obviously, making her low, "cluck", "cluck", "cluck" but at least not making her normal, very vocal protests when in the cage as a Broody Buster.

I just went out again to check on her...pacing back and forth in the front of the cage like she's going mad/crazy, not showing any interest on sitting on the eggs, still "cluck, cluck, clucking" in her low tone.

I do know she is broody; I've gone down this road with her a couple of times as well as with another one of my girls (thank God, not at the same time!)...on the nest for two days & nights straight. When approached she would growl, all of her feathers would puff straight out all over her body and would peck at my hand when I put my hand by her.

I know she wants to get to the nest box that is her favorite so she can just brood there but that is not an option now.

I'm at my wits end because I just don't know what to do...
Do you have some of her own eggs, even if they're not fertile, that you can add to the pile? That may make a difference, because they "belong" while the new eggs are strange to her. Just be sure to mark them clearly, so you know which ones to remove when and if (hopefully WHEN!) she settles.
And since she tried to "arrange" the excelsior pad, you could give her some pine shavings or clean straw to build a hidey hole for her nest. Broodies can be a pain, but they can also be a lot of fun! Good Luck!
 
Do you have some of her own eggs, even if they're not fertile, that you can add to the pile? That may make a difference, because they "belong" while the new eggs are strange to her. Just be sure to mark them clearly, so you know which ones to remove when and if (hopefully WHEN!) she settles.
And since she tried to "arrange" the excelsior pad, you could give her some pine shavings or clean straw to build a hidey hole for her nest. Broodies can be a pain, but they can also be a lot of fun! Good Luck!
I actually do have some of her eggs and will do just that!!! I put the Excelsior pad on top of fresh pine shavings so there is a good amount of material for her to create her space...

Do you think the pacing bake and forth will calm down or stop? She is acting so crazy and it really kills me to see her so out of her mind!
 
She does not like your broody breaker space.
Adding her eggs will have no effect. Chickens dont recognise their eggs from others.

Your broody area should mimic her chosen nest box, but generally they like dark, quiet, and a space they feel safe in. Your broody breaker area probably harbors bad memories for her.
I would put those fertle eggs back in an egg carton (pointy end down) and keep them between 55-60 degrees.
Let her go back to her nest box for a daY or two, while you set her up a new area for brooding.
Move her to the new area after darkness, and hopefully she will take to it.
Some broody dont move well, but 95 percent lf mine do.
I built 2 broody hutches for this purpose. They resemble rabbit hutches but work perfectly.
20190527_163101.jpg 20180925_184313.jpg
 
Could be the breaker cage has negative connotations.
Do the regular nests use the excelsior pads?
Might be better to have something fluffier for incubating.

I use fake eggs until they settle into where I want them to hatch.
When I have a broody I wait until she's been in the nest most the day and all night for 2-3 days...along with those other signs I posted.

Then I put her in the broody enclosure with fake eggs in the floor nest, she won't like being moved, but if she is truly good and broody she will settle onto the new nest within a half a day.
Then I give her fresh fertile eggs and mark the calendar.

I like them separated by wire from the flock, it's just easier all around.
No having to mark eggs and remove any additions daily, no taking up a laying nest, no going back to the wrong nest after the daily constitutional.

I remove barrier about one week after hatch. The chicks are usually safe it's the broody who has to 'fight' her way back into the pecking order...which can be quick or take a few days.

Lots of space helps for re-integration.
 
Could be the breaker cage has negative connotations.
Do the regular nests use the excelsior pads?
Might be better to have something fluffier for incubating.

I use fake eggs until they settle into where I want them to hatch.
When I have a broody I wait until she's been in the nest most the day and all night for 2-3 days...along with those other signs I posted.

Then I put her in the broody enclosure with fake eggs in the floor nest, she won't like being moved, but if she is truly good and broody she will settle onto the new nest within a half a day.
Then I give her fresh fertile eggs and mark the calendar.

I like them separated by wire from the flock, it's just easier all around.
No having to mark eggs and remove any additions daily, no taking up a laying nest, no going back to the wrong nest after the daily constitutional.

I remove the barrier about one week after hatch. The chicks are usually safe it's the broody who has to 'fight' her way back into the pecking order...which can be quick or take a few days.

Lots of space helps for re-integration.
I believe everyone has a very valid point...the Broody Breaker is negative for her!

I have removed her this morning; she ran right out. Still doing her time-bomb cluck. Before I could move the brooder, five of my other girls went into the cage to investigate and my other Ameraucana laid her daily egg in there.

All of my nests have had and still have the Excelsior pads which I occasionally put herbs and dried flowers into for comfort. There is a lot of pine shavings, straw, and flock fresh throughout the entire coop - all of these were replaced over the weekend.

I will monitor her adjustment and see where she decides to settle; then will try to re-create the same environment and move her at night.

I have removed the fertile eggs and put them in a carton, pointy side down, but they needed to be rinsed off because two of the fertile eggs got crushed by the curious explorers. I have labeled them with the date laid - they are inside of our Kegerator which is set at 56 degrees temperature in my house. Ambient temps in my home today is too warm, 70 degrees.

I have closed up the Brooder completely for the time being, once the on-lookers and those that immediately laid in it, left. I will be checking in on all of them throughout the day, especially Wizzygig! This dramatic change has confused the whole flock and all of them need some time to adjust.

I really hope this works! Having Wizzygig go broody almost back to back to back has been really hard to deal with and I know it can't be good for her either.
 
I have labeled them with the date laid

The date you are going to write on the eggs..
Remember that the eggs will hatch 21 days from the first day they begin to be brooded, not from the day they are laid.
You can gather hatching eggs for 10 different days but they will all hatch beginning (day 1)the day you place them under a broody or in an incubator.
iF you have to wash the eggs do so with a slightly damp cloth, or scrape as much as you can off with a knife. Washing removes the bloom that shields bacteria from entering the egg. Sometimes washed eggs still hatch, but I believe it lowers the hatch rate.
 
The date you are going to write on the eggs..
Remember that the eggs will hatch 21 days from the first day they begin to be brooded, not from the day they are laid.
You can gather hatching eggs for 10 different days but they will all hatch beginning (day 1)the day you place them under a broody or in an incubator.
iF you have to wash the eggs do so with a slightly damp cloth, or scrape as much as you can off with a knife. Washing removes the bloom that shields bacteria from entering the egg. Sometimes washed eggs still hatch, but I believe it lowers the hatch rate.
Thank you! I forgot about keeping the dates right when they are actually placed under my girl, not the date when laid...thank you! I did have to wash the fertile eggs because they were completely covered in yolk and whites from the two eggs that were busted open. I will use the remaining 4 if Wizzygig settles in but if need be, I can go out and get new fertile ones that have their bloom intact.
 

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