The Broody Hen
How do you know if your hen has gone all broody?
You will know when she is broody- it is a bit like the Squat. When it happens you will know it! Here are some tell-tale signs that indicate that your hen is her broody phase:
If you have fertile eggs or very young chicks to give to your hen then you should consider moving here to a new space such as a Brooder Box. I haven't hatched chicks yet so I'll leave you to Google it to find out that information. However, I have attempted getting a hen to adopt chicks. If you want to try this, have a read of the Chick Adoption page.
What to do if you do not have fertile eggs for your broody hen to sit on or do not want to hatch chicks? Your options are to: a) Leave the broody where she is and just wait until she gets over it. I tried this with Matilda (the first to go broody in my flock) and 2.5 weeks later she showed no signs of letting up on being broody despite the lack of any eggs (I collected them each day). This was a problem as she had plucked out lots of feathers, was losing weight and all in the middle of winter. Thankfully, the other hens that were laying either shared the nest box with her and laid their egg or booted her out to lay so at least I didn't have to worry about nest box availability. OR b) Separate her from the flock and place her into a 'broody breaker' cage. This is not a difficult thing to do. Firstly get hold of a collapsible dog crate or a plastic-based rabbit hutch. I use the latter for my cage. The hen will need access to water and feed. I found plastic trays from the pet store that could be hung from the cage wires. When the hen is in the broody breaker you could switch to a Pullet Grower feed if you have some as the hen does not require extra calcium at this point but you can just continue to feed her the Layer feed. If you can, put in a bar for your hen to use as a roost bar. I didn't have height in the cage to do this though. Place your hen in your broody breaker cage and keep in her a well-lit position. At night you can cover the cage with some cloth or towel to provide a night-time environment if the area is lit or it is really cold (to avoid 'drafts' during sleep time). Avoid using any kind of bedding as the idea is to make it uncomfortable for her to nest- the plastic base will be cool and not conducive to sitting on for long periods. I clean out the poo regularly each day as it is really smelly! I've successfully had 2 hens in the broody breaker together- admittedly it was Matilda and Phryne who are friends and roam together. When Matilda went broody in winter, I did put a very thin layer of pine shavings down each night as I didn't want her to catch a chill either. The other job of the shavings is to absorb any water that is split. I find that Matilda typically will knock over water and feed the first time I put her in - she obviously has been trying to escape... I usually keep the broody breaker in the garage but will move the cage with the hen outdoors with the other chickens to get some fresh air/sun. However, I do not let the broody hen out. Also this way the other chickens do not forget her. How long you need to keep her in the broody breaker will depend on the hen. I've kept Matilda and her buddy Phryne once for over a week in the broody breaker. How do you know when the hen is no longer broody?
You might notice is that the hen will stop clucking and become her 'usual' self. And when you decide to free her will not run straight to the nest box or attempt to get into the coop. I test this out by keeping all the other chickens in the coop/run and then letting the broody hen out. Matilda, if she is still broody, will circle the coop and if she cannot get in will then fly onto the nest box and sit atop it until I remove her. If your hen is still broody put her back into the nest box for a few more days. I haven't had any trouble with reintegrating the no longer broody hen back into the coop thus far with this method. Usually the hen resumes laying a day or two after I've put her back in with the other chickens. |
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