Please no more broodies

[sheila3935]

In March my BA at the age of 8 months went broody. Hatched out 7 of which I still have 3 but thats ok I am keeping those. Then this month my D'Anvers decides she wants to have babies. The four eggs she is setting on are duds but I have 5 of the bantam eggs in the bator due to hatch July 3rd so they will go under her. Now this morning I go out and have a NN on the nest that decided to take my hand off when I reached in to pet her. PLEASE....stop the broodies. Did I also mention I got 5 chicks from Cackle when we went to Missouri that are 14 weeks old and got 10 from the feed store that are about 7 weeks old? I'm running out of room here.

But then again a barred NN would be kinda cool

 

[<3ChickenForever]

It is actually an easy and simple process to make your hens not broody. All you do is take all the eggs underneath the hen EVERYDAY that way she knows that its no use to keep sitting there, she'll strat to realize it within... about 4-7 days, is my guess. It didn't take us that long to make my hens not broody.

 

[hinkjc]

I wish my broodies would figure out it is no use to sit, as I am not letting them hatch any more eggs this season. lol I've got 3 buff orps, 1 black orp, 3 white orps, 3 araucana broody now and I'm sure someone new will be broody tomorrow. Oh and 3 pheasant hens are sitting on eggs.

Some are so stubborn, they sit almost year round. The best approach for breaking them is to put them in a wire pen or close off the nest box. Of course, these options are not always viable and putting them in a separate pen can make reintroduction difficult. Good luck with your stubborn girls.

 

[buckabucka]

I had my first broody this spring. I gave her a couple eggs that were in the incubator, and she hatched out one. Then a second broody started, and a third. I don't have room for any more chicks, so I put #2 and 3 in wire cages, but even after 2 weeks, they did not break.

A friend told me he thought it was mean to cage them. He just lets his sit, grabbing the eggs out from under them each day, and told me they will stop sitting in 30 - 40 days. So we built a couple of extra nest boxes (we didn't have many) and put the broodies in them. The very next day, a fourth went broody!

It has not been 30 days yet, but I've adjusted to fishing around under the chickens for any eggs!

 

[sheila3935]

Well I guess she was just practicing cause she was off the nest this afternoon and stayed off. Maybe she just wanted to peck the crap out of my hand. Just surprised me cause she usually doesnt act that way, but I sure am glad she wasnt. I already have a D'Anvers setting on bantam eggs, but I have a guy that wants them. If this economy doesnt get any better I guess I should get them all to set and pray for boys that way we can have chicken and eggs to eat if nothing else.

 

[llrumsey]

This year I had 2 geese go broody on me, both in the same tire, I was looking at them and of course getting hissed at, the next thing I saw was a little black head stick up, then go back down, up then down over and over, it was a black hen the went broody with the geese, she was living under the geese, I then had my palm turkey go broody after I had taken her eggs from her, I felt so sorry for her sitting on an empty nest that I put about 9 hen eggs under her, I new have 2 white midget turkeys sitting on about 20 eggs. Turkeys growl....just like a dog, cant trust them either. and now I am having guines hatch in the incubator.

I have never had so many broody hens. It's really neat.