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[Big Chicken]

Pootle our white silky has taken to sitting on the nest all day making bok bok noises. Definitely looks like she's broody. She's hardly eating or drinking so because we are really soft and this is our first broody hen we are worried about her. Any advice on how we can snap her out of it.

 

Big Chicken

[Egluntyne]

Hello And welcome to the forum.

 

There is an informative article **here** that you might find useful.

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Hello Big Chicken and welcome to the forum .

 

I've just recently had my first broody hen and managed to snap her out of it quite quickly (twice). More by luck than skill, I suspect .

 

As soon as you see she's on the nest, kick her off. If she's still laying she can lay in the run instead - bit mean, but needs must! Remove other eggs pronto too. You can put a brick or flowerpot in the nestbox to deter her sitting there, or even shut the eglu/coop door (if the others have laid).

 

You can also dunk her nether regions in a cold bucket of water a few times a day. That lowers her body temperature. Some people use icepacks in the nestbox to make it uncomfortable.

 

If all else fails, get a broody cage (a dog crate or the like). I have one but haven't had to use it yet.

 

Hope that helps .

[sheik]

Hello Big Chicken

 

I'm not quite sure how, but Luna and Flumpy have both managed to lay in the Eglu nest, despite Pootle taking up permanent residence in there.

 

Now that they've both laid I've evicted Pootle and shut the Eglu door, so they're all out free-ranging.

 

I don't think we'll be getting any Pootle eggs for a while, as she's not eating much (although she did have a bit of food this morning).

 

But... Luna has laid the biggest blue egg I've ever seen - definitely a double-yolker

 

/\dam

[Mrs Frugal]

I've had 2 hybrids go broody in the last couple of weeks and have snapped them out of it really quickly by giving them a cold bath as soon as the first signs appear and by blocking the nest at night so they can't sleep in it and get warm and cosy as that just prolongs broodiness. Cool them down and they soon get over it. Jenny was doing the feathery pancake bit in the nest yesterday along with the "ninja scream" as Ollie calls it when we opened the eggport to get her out. A nice long dip in a sink of cold water (OK, with a trickle of hot in as I'm not hard hearted enough to use just cold ) soon sorted her out. We closed the Cube up in the afternoon once they'd all produced their eggs to stop her from going back in again and put all sorts of gubbins in the nest box so that she couldn't spend the night in it and although she's still bok bokking this morning, she's made no attempt to go back into the nest.

[sheik]

Great idea bout blocking the nestbox at night, we'll try it tonight!

 

What is the reasoning behind dunking them in cold water? It seems a bit harsh...

 

/\dam

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Apparently their body temperature rises when they're broody (for keeping those eggies nice and cosy ) so dunking them lowers the temp. Cruel to be kind!

[Mrs Frugal]

Dunk 3 times a day right up to the wingpits and repeat daily until the signs of broodiness disappear. It works if you act quickly at the first sign of broodiness .

[superjules]

A lot of people use the wire cage method but you have to leave them in it 24 hours a day, rather than let them in the henhouse at night.

[sheik]

OK thanks, I might give it a go .

Pootle has just enjoyed a bowl of boiled rice, but is now constantly walking up the ramp to an Eglu that is clearly closed. Silly chicken!

 

/\dam

[Helen&Lee]

3 of my Brahmas went broody at the end of March and I thought I would just let them get on with it.

 

I did chuck them out morning and night to get them to eat and whenever possible I would shut the cube door.

 

But last week I took a stance with them

 

I filled the nesting box with ice packs during the day, (the other laying chooks still went in and layed, bit cramped with 3 Brahmas in there too ) and in the evening I filled it with plant pots so they couldn't even go in there and get comfortable. 5 days of this, I've now on my 3rd day of life back to normal.

 

Helen

[Mrs Frugal]

OK thanks, I might give it a go .

Pootle has just enjoyed a bowl of boiled rice, but is now constantly walking up the ramp to an Eglu that is clearly closed. Silly chicken!

 

/\dam

 

Jenny and Athene did that. Only takes a day or so for them to get the message though, with a bit of luck, so stick with it .

[MaxBaz]

Great tips and ideas about dealing with a broody hen - BUT not sure how to resolve my problem.

 

Out of the 4 hens, Caroline lays second and she is still on the nest when I leave for work - the other two hens lay during the course of the morning in the nesting box. They go back into the run and she then sits on all the eggs until I get home.

 

What I did for the first time yesterday was to gently push her off (which resulted in a lot of squarking but it worked) however my husband at lunchtime today said she absolutely would NOT move.

 

Are the eggs still OK to eat after being sat on for 8-9 hours when I get home?

 

This weekend, I will follow the advise already given, but it's not so easy when I am not there during the day and can't push her out once the last of the eggs are laid.

[superjules]

Maxbaz - can you put some kind of partition in your run so she can't get to the cube? Otherwise, the wire cage inside the run may be the way to go. I know it sounds cruel but once they get into proper broody mode you can end up with them sitting like that for weeks, losing condition. And obviously lots of slightly staler eggs!

[Ain't Nobody Here]

I agree, perhaps a broody cage is the only way to go. I bought one of * these * which I haven't actually used yet but won't hesitate to if Molly starts her nonsense again .

[Helen&Lee]

Maxbaz - You have to be firm!

We leave for work around 6.30am - not back before 6pm.

 

In the mornings I was lifting them all out one by one, ( 3 broodys ) don't mess about - hands straight in and lift - less peck marks on your hands!

Then I would throw treats in the run and leave for work, repeating the same process when we got home at night but removing the eggs the others had laid at the same time.

 

That last week, I put ice blocks in the box in the morning, replacing with flowerpots in the evening - which meant I only had to lift them after they'd spent the day on ice

 

My husband incidently, tried lifting them one morning, came in and said 'no they won't move' Cue woman with more than enough to do before leaving for work storming out to pick them up.

 

Good Luck, go for it this weekend

 

Helen

[Ain't Nobody Here]

however my husband at lunchtime today said she absolutely would NOT move.

Must admit I did think, hmm, chicken .... versus .... grown man . Tricky one . Tell him to get in there, grab her with those man-sized hands and chuck her off . They're tougher than they look, those fluffy girlies .

[Big Chicken]

Well it's now been a few days since Pootle became broody and she has snapped out of it, with the help of a few cold baths (5 in total over two days) and a football in the nesting box.

 

It was quite funny on the first night when we put the football in there to see her trying to squeeze her body into the tiny gap left between the football and the eglu walls. She was balancing on the edge with her wings over the ball. She finally gave up and sat in the doorway of the eglu in a bad mood. Our two other girls, Flumpy and Luna had to walk over her to get to bed.

 

Anyway thanks everyone for your advice.

[sheik]

No Pootle egg yet, but she seems completely back to normal to me. How long after they snap out of broodiness before they start laying again? I'm predicting an egg tomorrow!

 

/\dam

[Tessa the Duchess]

After her prolonged 10 week broody period Annie has been fine for 3 weeks now.....until yesterday when I found her puffed up, glued to the nestbox AGAIN I chucked her off and devoted yesterday to dunking her in cold water up to her neck, on the hour every hour. Today she seems back to normal, but I am keeping a very close eye on her

 

Tessa

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Found Molly all cosy in the nestbox at tucking in time last night . Out went the chicken, in went the brick .