Broody Hens

I Think My Hen Is Broody!

A broody sitting on eggs

    You go to your coop, locking everything up for the night. All is well - until you realize you're missing a chicken. Frantically, you look around, searching for her. Then there she is, in the nest box. Laying an egg this time of night, when she should be roosting? No! Your girl is broody, now what is it you're supposed to do about it?

     If your hen is broody she will be sitting somewhere dark and calm, probably in a nest box. If you go near her, she will puff up, raising her feathers on end to appear larger than she is. She might 'growl' at you. It sounds sort of funny. Its a rough growling sound meaning, "Hey! You better get away from me, don't bother me or my eggs. I'll tear you up!"

     Some hens (particularly if they were friendly and trusted you before they went broody) will be calm and will let you touch them, their eggs, and their chicks, without so much as a peck. Others are more protective and will peck very hard, or even flog you. The hen in the picture above will let me play with her babies and she would let me move her eggs around, too, although she doesn't like being touched herself.

Can I Break My Hen From Being Broody?

     You can make a 'Broody Breaker'. If you don't want a broody, because you don't need any more chickens (what a crazy reason!) or because you don't have anywhere to put her or for whatever reason - you can put her in a Broody Breaker.

     So what is a Broody Breaker? It's just a wire cage, anything will do so long as air can get under her butt. If she can't sit, she can't be broody. Hang it up somewhere so that she wont be on the ground (the wire cage wont do any good if she can still sit) and keep her there for a few days.

     Some hens will simply get discouraged when their 'eggs' (whether they are imaginary or golf balls) don't hatch and will leave the nest. I have heard of chickens that would stay broody for three months - yes three whole months! Remember, incubation only lasts 21 days. Some broody hens are determined. But when a hen goes broody repeatedly, it can be bad for their health. They eat less, they loose weight, their wattles and comb loose color, and they generally aren't as healthy. It should be okay for 21 days - but maybe not three months.

Pros & Cons: Keeping a Broody in the Flock or Out?

     Your girl is probably in a nest box, and it is most likely one of the favorites, used by many. It is up to you whether to leave her there or move her to a more private location.

With the Flock:

• You will have to change the entire flock's diet, because the chicks can't eat a layer feed
• The other hens might get in the nest box with her, crushing or cracking eggs
• The other hens will lay eggs in that box, resulting in a staggered hatch where chicks might get left behind
• The broody and chicks will always be members of the flock, so pecking order issues will be unlikely

Alone:

• The rest of the flock will forget about the broody, and when you put her back her rank in the pecking order will be lost
• The whole flock won't have to be on chick starter/grower
• You have to find a place to put them
• Moving her might cause the hen to leave the nest

WARNINGS:

• A hen might leave her nest to steal another hen's chicks if they hatch sooner
• Particularly heavy breeds might accidentally break an egg to their weight
• Some hens might kill chicks during or after hatch, as in they will peck them to death (this has never happened to me, but I have heard of hens doing this) 

Getting Eggs

A carton of shipped eggs

     You have a broody, she's sitting, but you don't have any eggs for her to hatch. Of course you can always hatch your chickens' eggs, but what if they're infertile? What if you want to hatch something different?

     I highly suggest that you don't get shipped eggs. Shipped eggs are always a gamble, but sometimes you have to get eggs shipped if you want a certain breed. That's okay, so long as you're using an incubator. If you're using a live, feathery incubator, I recommend getting local eggs or using your own eggs. With a hen, you can't turn off the egg turner for the first few days to help the air cells reattach. That hen is going to turn them manually every day. And, if they're cracked, her weight might break them open completely, even if you seal them with wax or nail polish.

     I also suggest you wait a few days, maybe a week, before getting you hen any eggs. What if, three days in, your girl decides it isn't worth it and she leaves the nest? Wait to make sure she's serious. Then, get her some eggs.

21 Days

     It takes 21 days for an egg to hatch. 21 miserable, impatient days. Read up on incubation. Generally, most people candle on day 7, 14, and 18. Some people candle a broody hen's eggs, and some people don't. It's totally up to you (I don't, if you were wondering).

     During that time, a hen might roll eggs out from underneath her. If she kicks them out, it is because she thinks them bad, infertile or not developing. Put them in your incubator anyway. Sometimes, hens are wrong.

     Really, just leave her alone and let her do what her instincts tells her to. She knows far more about hatching an egg than you do.



The Chicks are Here!

A broody showing her chicks how to eat 

     You have little fluffy butts! As said above, read up on incubation and what can go wrong, so you know how to help a shrink-wrapped or malpositioned chick.

     After they are out, don't worry about there food and water. Their mom will call them to her by clucking to them and teach them where the feed and water is and show them how to eat and drink. She will keep them warm and take care of them. Again - she knows what to do. 


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