Chicken bald back

[LittleOwl]

Speckly Beatrice came to us with 3 others at POL over a year ago. At first she was as normal as the others, but each month for the last 6 or so she has been properly broody. Each time we have then moved her from the cube nesting box to a puppy pen on stilts so that she gets the cool air under her and can't nest. I hate doing this, and she hates it too, but after between 2 to 6 days she is ready to go back with the others be a normal laying hen. Today she has gone broody again, so we need to get her out of the cube before bedtime so the other girls can get in there. I have been thinking about giving in to her as I feel so sorry for her. We do have a rooster (feisty and nasty in the spring!)and so maybe the eggs she are sitting on (today's batch from my flock of 6) could potentially hatch. It has always been the situation with raising roosters that has put me off; I would hate to have to dispatch them. We do have a 2 acre wood they could live in when older if they were docile enough and would stay there! We have an unused rabbit hutch sitting in a shed with access to outdoors we could move her to today with the eggs and some nesting material.

 

Does she suffer from going broody every months? What would be the best thing for her healthwise? Might she eventually stop going broody on her own? Should we just carry on with our current plan of action of cooling her in a wire pen each time for a few days? What would you do?

 

Thank you

[Plum]

I believe it's too late in the year for chicks. Cold nights and days are coming. If it was me I'd aim to break the broody spell

[Patricia W]

She will also lose the tendency to become broody as the weather gets colder. If I were you I'd think about letting her hatch in the spring. It'll give you time to decide what to do with the boys.

[Chickabee]

Do you think you could take her eggs away and just let her get on with her natural broody spell ? Would that get in the way of the others ?

[Luvachicken]

I have one pekin who is extremely broody most of the time

She spends 3 days and nights in the dog crate and then gets released. She then goes back to normal for a week - with the odd egg - and then goes back to being broody.

It is frustrating, and there aren't so many eggs but that's how she is.

Sorry I haven't been much use but just wanted you to know it's not just your girlie.

[LittleOwl]

I thought I had posted this reply a couple of days ago, but it seems it had been saved as a draft anyway....

 

Thank you for reminding me it's getting too cold for chicks...simple things I tend to forget when my brain is in a muddle And thanks for letting me know it's not just my girl luvachicken, I haven't had a broody before, and so it has been new to me, and I have been worrying about her being put in the pen so often as she finds it so stressful, and of course the weather is getting colder at nights for her to be on her own. But I guess that is just how it has to be. I am not bothered about her laying, but she does actually lay regularly in between her spells anyway, bless her.

 

She is back in her puppy pen to cool her down, as usual, and shouting at me every time I go past! We will see how she is after the winter, I am hoping that somehow after her first moult she will stop being broody every month. If not, then we will make a decision then. Thanks so much for your advice and reassurance everyone