Silkie will not stop sitting

[Azulegg]

My silkie hen is losing it. I had to take away her egg she was sitting on because the chick died (as it was hatching). She is still sitting on the nest and there are no eggs!!! What do I do?? I thought taking away the egg(s) was supposed to break them. It's been 4 weeks now (I took the egg and dead chick away 6 days ago). BTW this is the 4th time she's been broody this year, I did have her hatch a batch of araucana and ameraucana eggs for me in the summer.

 

[birdlover]

They can be the hardest in the world to break of broodiness! The most recommended way I've read on here is to put her in a cage with a wire bottom so she can't keep the "nest" warm. OR, you could do like me and locate 2 chicks somewhere and put them under her. (Not so easy in the winter though). Good luck!!!

 

[swtangel321]

Quote:
Look for 2 chicks to give her (thats what I did also), where are you located ?? You could try looking on Craigslist.com for a couple !!

 

[Azulegg]

I am in south central PA. I don't want to put chicks under her this time of year since it is coooollldd!!! If it were spring, I'd shove a few of my ameraucana eggs under her. I really don't want her hatching anything this time of year since we are moving into winter. I am thinking of moving the nest box out of the hutch, that might do it. Thanks for the ideas.

 

[vfem]

My silkie happily sat on duck eggs for 30+ days.... I took the ducks... she went back to sitting for 5 more days before she stopped!

I took her (and 2 others doing it at the same time on NOTHING) and put them out to free range in the yard and would shut the run so they couldn't get back in for hours! (Of course I stayed outside with them for that period of time) Then opened up the run. It took the whole 5 days to get them broken of it. Now they stay out in the yard for the whole day.

Problem now is they are back to sleeping in heaps in the nesting boxes everynight.

Silkies are a LOT of work to get broken of broody.... and if you do... she'll probably want to start back again just after laying a few eggs in a matter of weeks!!!!

 

[Sunny Side Up]

I have a rescued wire parrot cage on a wire stand that is used as a Broody Buster. I don't have Silkies but have about a dozen mixed-breed bantams that all display varying degrees of broodiness. Some go as seldom as once a year, others much more frequently, setting eggs, raising chicks, and going back within weeks of leaving their previous clutch.

I used to try to break the broodies because I really don't have room for more chickens. But now I set them with 4-6 standard sized eggs and let them raise up the chicks. The hens make nice reliable mixed-breed layers that I can sell or give to friends, and the roos get invited to dinner.

I wonder what would happen if you just let a hen stay brooding on an empty nest. If she had even a golf ball under her she might set on it forever trying to hatch it, but what would she do on an empty nest? Would it compromise her health? Sure she wouldn't be eating much, but neither would she me expending much energy.

I wonder, but wouldn't try it myself, just in case it would be a bad idea. I'd give your hen a couple of new eggs & keep her in a warm spot, or break her broody spell in an airy wire-bottomed cage.

 

[Shared Acres]

My silkie sat on NOTHING for 5 weeks. I finally took her inside and locked her in a bathtub for 3-4 days, took her to work one of those days and put a diaper on her at home. That was enough to keep her from sitting any longer.

 

[SunAngel]

I have a yr old Silkie who is being a weird lil broody!

I keep finding her in the nesting boxes, most times head first, sometimes trying to fit in there while another hen is in there trying to lay her egg, so her tushy is hanging out the front of the nesting box lol.

She is going to have to get over it. I already have around 50 juvies and 10 two week olds I just hatched, plus possibly some new chicks in a week or so, no eggs for hens to hatch til Spring!

 

[Azulegg]

I always knew silkies were the broody type, however I did not know that they could become OBSESSED with it!!

She hatched 5 chicks for me this past summer. I am hoping to let her hatch a few eggs again in spring of 09.

 

[silkiechicken]

I had a silkie so obsessed with just sitting, she smothered her chicks to death over a few days and just kept on setting. She was one not meant to be a mom.