How do you discourage broodiness?

Hi there,

I know I've seen a lot of people talk about this, but --lazy me-- I'm hoping you might post here...

I think Lacey is going broody on me. Are cochins known brood hens??? Anyway, she likes to sit in the nesting box a LOT. At first if I went in and took out the egg, she'd come out, but today she continued to just sit there. I also noticed that she's pulled out a large number of feathers on her tummy leaving it bare... I'm guessing that must help keep the eggs warmer?

Anyway how do I break her of that? There are no roosters, so no reason to have her doing that. So far I've read in these threads about ice, baby tylenol, water, dark "penalty" boxes... can people please weigh in on what works for them and in what doses?

those u listed and also takeing the eggs and kick them out the nest when u catch them in it on eggs or in there wanting to just sit. put them in a rabbit cage for a few days so they r on wire and no nest box to get comfy. don't put nest boxes in and take the eggs. that's all the more i can think of at the moment.

Yes i agree take and isolate her in a cage with no nest that is what i do when i have a stubborn broody hen.
She will come around pretty quick when she realizes she's wasteing her time.

Cochins go broody more than any chicken i've had and alot of breeders i know have them to hatch their show eggs.

Once I pull her out, she seems to snap out of it for the day. So I'll try that first. By that, I don't think she's gone completely broody on me.

Also, kind of a side question, I had a golf ball in there to encourage them to lay in the box, but now that they are all laying --in the box!-- should I pull it out so that she doesn't have something to sit on all the time?

THANX!!!!

Yes if their all laying and you are removeing the eggs then remove the golf ball like you said she won't have anything to sit on LOL

Sometimes i feel bad when i take their eggs they kind of look at me like "why are you takeing my eggs"

Pay for shipping and handling and buy some eggs that you do want to hatch and put them in her nest. That seems to make them quit sitting around here. lol. Just kiddin, but that has happened to me twice. Mike

This message was edited Nov 9, 2008 3:55 PM

The thought crossed my mind, excelrealty, but I can only have 3 chickens in city limits so I'd have to sell what hatched. May be a route to go in the spring if she's still doing it.

she looks ridiculous with a quarter of her belly feathers missing... its like her bloomers aren't blooming anymore!

give her eggs, if you don't want to buy fertile eggs, give her plastic ones, some are just that way, let her sit, when nothing hatches she will give it up.

I don't agree

then what?

Lazy_ladies! Shhhhhhhhhsh. Let's keep this a secret question. How the @#@$%does one go about posting a new thread? I know little about chickens and even less about computers. Heeeeeelp Pleeeeeze. Haystack

Hey Haystack,

When you are in the main forum for Poultry and Livestock, scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page and you'll see a title bar and text box. Type in there, press 'preview', preview it, press 'submit', and you've just started yourself a new thread!

Thanks Lazy_ladies You just made my day. I owe you. Haystack

You're very welcome. :-) Wish everyone's days were that easily made. HA!

Are you still looking for info on how to 'shake up' a broodie hen? Cochins will go broodie and make excellent chicken mothers and foster moms for hatching non-chicken eggs such as duck, turkey and guinea. If you leave her in a nest she will not lay eggs and will just sit on the nest in a goofy trance for up to 4 weeks leaving the nest only once a day to eat, drink and take a short constitutional walk before returning to her nesting job.
One of the unpleasant aspects of shaking up broodie-ness is the fact that you must make her life uncomfortable. I keep a special 'Broodie Jail' for just this purpose. Jail must have just the simple requirements for life: food, water, shelter and No Nest. I use a bird cage large enough for my average size hen, place a sturdy stick for a roost and use a food and water arrangement that she can't knock over while she is going all hysterical and dramatic over the fact that her dreams of motherhood will not be fulfilled - this week. Jail should have good light and air and a useable roost. There should be no dark corners or comfy spots for your jailbird to mistake for a nest. Time served will be 1 to 4 days and nights depending upon how quickly she is caught in the act of broodie-ness. If you catch them quick, they should shake-up quick and return to chicken society to lay eggs. Some hens will be repeat offenders and might spend every other weekend in jail.

Yeah...everything PullTab said...lol. Just saved me some typing! A hen going broody is very hard on them.......I wouldn't leave a hen broody if she's not hatching eggs. The only thing I could add to what PullTab said is that I dunked my broodies in a bucket of ice water....just their breasts to cool them off. That was in the summer though...with the weather getting cold you probably wouldn't have to go that far. I put mine outside in their pen...you want to make sure it's up off the ground too, so the air can whoosh under them to cool them off. Also, outside keeps them in the light...broody's love dark places. I always put them inside at night. Last year I had to break about 8 broodies for one reason or another and doing it the way PullTab said with the addition of what I said....I didn't have 1 go back to being broody, it broke them all! Good luck!

Christy (still as long winded as ever : )

Glad to see you Christy, miss ya!!!! Both good advise.

Thanks everybody! I'll keep watching her. She was not in the box this morning as she has been the last week or so. So maybe that's a good sign.

Only new complications was it looked like someone pecked at the egg that was laid. hmmmm... these girls are gunna keep me on my feet. ha!

Twice I tried to hatch eggs and then the broody hen quit sitting. My post above was on the lighter side, kind of like if you want it to rain, wash your car. I really do not know how to make them stop going broody. Take care, Mike

I thought I had out smart her today. I put her in the poultry pyramid out in the yard with the other two, because she went back to the box and was sitting in there.

Unfortunately, I have quite the Houdini. She kept escaping --4 times!-- the pyramid. I finally witnessed how she did it. MAN is she determined! She'd ram the side of the cage until the bottom popped up a bit and then she squeezed out the bottom and went straight back to the box. Guess I'm going to have to stake it down if I expect that tactic to work. HA!

Wish you were not so far, I would like to rent her the next time that I want to try hatching eggs. I pretty much have to rely on an incubator. I prefer for them to have the protection of a mother hen.

Somebody mentioned tylenol in another thread. How much do you use and how often?

Tylenol would not be a good idea, chickens cats etc don't tolerate it well, she will give up it may take time, yeah consider yourself lucky some people have to hatch eggs out with out one, worse yet you could have my current problem one crafty possum whom I tried to trap last night and he wouldn't go for the cat food.

Makj,
Thanks for the perspective. You are right. It could be worse. I just wish I lived outside of city limits where I could let her be a brood hen and have more girls for eggs. Unfortunately, she's my best layer, everyday (except for twice) for the last month and a half and I don't want her to stop when going broody.

yeah I hear ya, hope she settles down

Makj, if you are using one of those live cage type traps, try to hide it in weeds if you have an area and put some inside also. Two years ago I lost 1/2 a canteloupe every night. Every day for over two weeks I checked a live trap bated with canteloupe, where I could see the trap from the back of the house with no success. I moved it into the canteloupe vines and covered it with weeds and vines, inside and out. I went one day without checking it and the next day there she was. I was irresponsible though as it was around 100 degrees so she died. I felt so bad. They are pretty smart and seem to recognize a metal cage as not natural. Mike

they are smarter than most people give them credit for, and as mad as I am, I really don't want to hurt the little sucker, but I think this guy has had a taste of blood and now keeps coming back, I am sure the possums have been eating the eggs outside the coop at night, which I really don't mind, but this was mean and I lost a really great chicken, tame and friendly, and the poor chick, one of the first times out. anyway going to check the trap and hopefully take a trip to release the little devil, thanks

Keep us posted

operation "possum" was a success last night, got him in the live trap and put him in the car and we went about 5 miles up the mountain, where there is a water source and let the guy go, he zipped out and was gone, I still think there could be another one as the face looked a little different, will try another trap tomorrow night, as I freaked myself out last night and thought I am not going by myself, it is pretty dark and not much around.

Good deal.

Yay! So far she seems to have knocked it off! She's back to laying. That's my girl.

So, I know I'm a total geek, but hey, what can say, I'm a data analyst by trade. I just created charts and Lacey laid 19 eggs in her first month of laying and has laid 11 eggs just for the month of November. Talula has laid 9 eggs and Anya has laid 6 eggs for the month of November.

~8-D ~8-D ~8-D ~8-D ~8-D ~8-D ~8-D ~8-D ~8-D

That is super, I wish I could keep track of who is laying what. I just added 4 Ameraucanas hens a buff orp pullet, 4 sex links hens to the menagerie and all my pullets should be laying soon, they are right at 20 weeks old now. Most of the other hens are laying, now if I could convince the cochins and Brahma's to lay. Maybe they will start after the incubators are empty.

after they hatch thier eggs, how long before they start to lay again?

If you are speaking of a hen hatching her own eggs depends on how long you leave her bitty's with her.
I remove the hen from mine when they are about 5 to 7 weeks sometimes the hen becomes bored with them and will pick at them. Now these are caged birds and i don't know about free range chickens.
My hens won't lay for a while maybe 4 or 5 weeks as it takes time for them to get back to just being a hen. I probably didn't help much Jordan i believe you have free range but this is what i know about caged bantams.

thanks harmony, and yes jezzebell free ranges

Are you going to set jezzie that would be so cute little bits in the yard.
Jordan I'm sure free range babys stay with their mom a while as she will have so much to teach them.

jezzies baby's hatched about 4 weeks ago. i put them in a cage yesterday, because i found them walking down the driveway without her. she don't seem to mind i took them. she is spending all her time scratching up the yard with wally

Did i miss your post on those I"M SORRY if i did and OH goodness it happens sometimes mama just gets tired and they get independent.
My hens lose interest in theirs i'm going to have to move mine soon mama just plows over the top of them at feeding time.
You know as much as they fuss with them when they hatch you would think they would never let them go and then there they go down the drive LOL