We've been keeping hens for 7 years now and we've got our first broody hen We noticed at the weekend that she was spending a lot of time in the next box so we kept taking her out and she seems right as rain pottering about and doing normal chicken things but you could guarantee we'd go back a bit later and she'd be back in there again. It was OK to keep doing that when we were there to take her out but being at work this week we've just had to let her get on with it. OH is getting home about 4ish so he's taking her out and shutting the coop and she's clucking like mad and pacing by the door. I read on the internet to put her on the perches at night in the dark and hopefully she'd stay there and that seems to be working as she's coming out with the others in the morning but she's back in the nest box again later. We'll just have to keep persevering with her but hopefully we can break her habit soon
Kath xx
Mum to my beautiful girls Lucy, Holly, Rosie, Hettie, Polly, Ruby, Lily, Penny, Gracie, Maisie, Molly, Evie and my gorgeous boy Toby
RIP my beautiful Ranger, Roxy, Bluebelle, Poppy, Speckle, Daisy and Honey xxxx
Purebreds do it several times a year! I used to try & break the broodies but eventually gave up & left them to it. Make sure there's no eggs under her, chuck her off a couple of times a day if she isnt coming off herself, make sure there's no redmite in there (the biggest danger for broodies) She'll eventually give up but might take a few weeks. Tis a bit late in the year for her the brood, she might try again in the spring. What breed is she?
"He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." --Immanuel Kant
She's a Russett Green, not a pure breed and she's very young. We only got her two months ago at Point-of-Lay. You have to feel sorry for her clucking all the time
Kath xx
Mum to my beautiful girls Lucy, Holly, Rosie, Hettie, Polly, Ruby, Lily, Penny, Gracie, Maisie, Molly, Evie and my gorgeous boy Toby
RIP my beautiful Ranger, Roxy, Bluebelle, Poppy, Speckle, Daisy and Honey xxxx
Water and food near by and let her get on with it . No point in upsetting her . I think the reason people try and stop them is so they start laying again . A bit like moulting . Bob
bikesandbirdsbob wrote:Water and food near by and let her get on with it . No point in upsetting her . I think the reason people try and stop them is so they start laying again . A bit like moulting . Bob
Yes it is natural. I have Indiana, my parrot, sitting on 3 eggs at the moment. Poor little soul. I have hardly seen her for 3 weeks. She will soon realise it is getting nowhere and be out again.
We've got a little separate area outside, we're thinking of putting her in there when we get home later today as we've noticed that when she's clucking all the time the other's are picking on her a bit and she's a bit skitty. She'll have her own food and water in there and she can just chill
Kath xx
Mum to my beautiful girls Lucy, Holly, Rosie, Hettie, Polly, Ruby, Lily, Penny, Gracie, Maisie, Molly, Evie and my gorgeous boy Toby
RIP my beautiful Ranger, Roxy, Bluebelle, Poppy, Speckle, Daisy and Honey xxxx
I have found that I have to intervene as my ladies take it in turn being broody and have sat for in excess of 90 days, losing weight and condition despite me making sure several times a day that they were eating and drinking. I also know of one person who has lost three of her hens when broody, now whether she tried/encouraged them to eat/drink I do not know. Now at the first sign of any broodiness I pop them in a large dog cage with smaller wire on the bottom with food and drink in the hen house where the others go in and out all day. I usually find it takes anything from two to five days for them to come out of it. I have found that the sooner I get them in the cage the shorter the time in there. I have just had one in there for two days. Out of seven hens, four of mine have gone broody regularly even when I did not intervene, they are mixed breeds. The two Campines and one very small partridge like hen have never gone broody since having them.
Thankfully she seems to have come out of it now. Saturday morning I went to lift her out of the nest box and she ran out herself and hasn't appeared inclined to go back in since. Just hoping she's still pottering about when I get in tonight, that's if I make it home before it goes dark Thanks for all your suggestions, a learning curve should it happen again xx
Kath xx
Mum to my beautiful girls Lucy, Holly, Rosie, Hettie, Polly, Ruby, Lily, Penny, Gracie, Maisie, Molly, Evie and my gorgeous boy Toby
RIP my beautiful Ranger, Roxy, Bluebelle, Poppy, Speckle, Daisy and Honey xxxx
We noticed at the weekend that she was spending a lot of time in the next box so we kept taking her out and she seems right as rain pottering about and doing normal chicken things but you could guarantee we'd go back a bit later and she'd be back in there again. It was OK to keep doing that when we were there to take her out but being at work this week we've just had to let her get on with it. OH is getting home about 4ish so he's taking her out and shutting the coop and she's clucking like mad and pacing by the door. I read on the internet to put her on the perches at night in the dark and hopefully she'd stay there and that seems to be working as she's coming out with the others in the morning but she's back in the nest box again later. We'll just have to keep persevering with her but hopefully we can break her habit soon 
and hasn't appeared inclined to go back in since. Just hoping she's still pottering about when I get in tonight, that's if I make it home before it goes dark 
