Why Oh why??

[KatieBugg]

I am having a major Broody thing going around my coop!! I have 3 girls just the last 7 days, 2 cochins bantys and my big ol BO girl Pammie (named after Pamela Anderson due to the breast area LOL) I am very leary letting them set with winter comming on. I already got an awesome group of Black/Lav Orps that are just 3 weeks old, that I got from Bargain. I have been trying to break these girls. Anyone have a fool proof method?

 

[rittert3]

There is a paragraph in " A guide to better hatching" by Janet Stromberg that says: put your broody hens in a wire bottomed pen hung from the ceiling (so it can sway) for 24 hours with no food, and the swaying and lack of food will break them up quickly. Maybe some else that has used this method can give more details on the dementions of the pen and such.

 

[Wynette]

I have a "broody buster/breeder cage" that is similar to a rabbit hutch (but with a roost and a nest box). I block access to the nest box part, and put the broody in there (wire bottom) for 2 days. I DO GIVE FOOD AND WATER though. It takes just 2 days and they are broken - occasionally, it takes a full 3 days, but usually 2 does the trick.

You can do the same thing with a dog crate, but it has to have the wire bottom - I have a friend who had a plastic dog crate and she cut the bottm out and attached hardware cloth, then put the crate up on cinder blocks. It doens't need to swing or hang, it just needs to have air flow underneath. A hen won't brood if she can't find a nice, warm spot to place her fanny.

 

[KatieBugg]

Thank you guys!! Looks like I will be picking up a couple of cages........

 

[Darlasmum]

I used the crate method twice- and it worked both times. I just put mine up on bricks, so the cage is off the ground instead of hanging it. Made my girls very unhappy- lots of yelling and flapping about. I did provide water and food. 48hrs later- no more broody. Good luck.