Trying to convince a broody pullet to sit on eggs.

[australorp_breeder]

One of my Blue Cochin pullets decided to go broody yesterday. I saw her on one of the nests and just thought she was going to lay an egg, but she ended up staying there all day. Lately though, I've been wanting to hatch chicks, and I don't feel like going out and buying an incubator. (All of the chicks I've ever raised were hatched from their mothers.) I would've left her out there on the eggs, but the nest isn't in the coop. And on top of that, it's going to start raining soon, and at night time we have predators like possums and skunks that will try to kill my chickens. I currently have my broody pullet locked up in the smaller chicken coop with about six eggs, but she refuses to sit on them now. They're the same eggs in the other nest I just moved them to a safer location. How could I possibly convince my chicken to sit on them again? I have a rabbit cage I could put her in with the eggs, or I can try making a convincing nest out of hay.

 

[miss_thenorth]

She may just have been out of sorts yesterday. i usually monitor behaviour for a few days before hand to see if she truly is broody. If she doens't want to sit, you can't realy force her to. Just watch her, and have some eggs ready incase she decided she is. Also, if you move her at night, it is usually less of an ordeal to the ehn,and she will adapt better. Good luck!

 

[australorp_breeder]

Thank you. Someone else told me she might not be 100% broody, but she's been clucking and acting like it the past day. I'll just have to wait and see. Like you said, if she doesn't want to sit on them I can't make her.

 

[miss_thenorth]

Keep the eggs ahndy--she may jsut be thinking about it.

 

[jenjscott]

I moved one into a protected tractor, I took her a day to decide she was still broody.

 

[Happy Chooks]

I have a light brahma that's been "thinking about it" for months. She screaches like a broody, hogs eggs like a broody, puffs up like a broody and she gets really peeved if another chicken comes in while she's laying her egg. She sits for an hour or two, then pops off the nest like nothing ever happened.