beach chick Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 well, I've tried everything with Mercedes, and still she is broody. dunking her in a bucket of cold water for anything up to a minute at a time (could feel her shivering); putting icepacks in the nesting box (she defrosts them in about an hour!). also, she has plucked herself bare underneath - is this normal? so I have decided to try a broody cage. a friend is lending me a wire dog cage, so I'm thinking to put this just next to the run, up on bricks, with food/water bowls in there. how long do I leave her in there? and do I leave her there overnight as well? when I let her out again, will she have problems getting on with the other girls? I feel mean thinking about doing this, but then I have only had 3 eggs a day for the last 4 days, so clearly something is amiss... thanks in advance for any advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MisHapp Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 you need to leave her for 2/3 days - preferably 3 if you cans stand it. Day and night in the cage (make sure she is safe at night - I could put my cage inside the run, if not bring it inside at night. After 3 days, let her out - if she dashes off for the nest, she needs another day or so. Make sure she has plenty of food/water/shade. Good luck. MH x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJuff Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 Do all hens go broody? I'm still new to this hen keeping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeckyBoo Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 I don't know, but our Speckledy is JUST coming out of her broody phase after over 4 weeks! It's been a nightmare, mostly because she wouldn't get off to eat and drink, and by hogging the nest no one else laid any eggs. So with 7 hens (one doesn't lay) we went from 5 eggs a day to one egg a day. Not very good! Anyway we solved it by putting her out (kicking and screaming) to free range every morning whilst everyone else stayed in the run. They got access to the nest and she HAD to get some air to her bottom!! Sure enoug we're now on two eggs a day and altho she does prefer to be on the nest she will come out voluntarily and scratch about. SO good luck, it's a bloomin nuisance but we left it far too long. Stick with it! Mrs B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lindy Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 Hi Beach Chick, I agree with MH's advice - naughty Mercedes should stay in the cage day and night as if you let her back into the Eglu at night she'll just snuggle down in the nest box again and get too cosy. We used a broody cage (actually an upturned bird cage elevated on bricks) very successfully with our Speckled Star Stella - she'd been resolutely broody for over 4 weeks and the cage sorted things out in 48 hours. A couple of months later we saw the signs of broodiness starting again but that time we didn't hang around; back she went into the broody box right away and this time she stopped being broody even more quickly. On both occasions we just put the cage with Stella inside it into the garden shed overnight as it would have been a major kerfuffle to get it into the run. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beach chick Posted August 27, 2007 Author Share Posted August 27, 2007 ok, will bite the bullet and do the broody cage thing! thanks for all advice everyone, hoping to get it into action tomorrow if poss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
