ELeVan ~ Honaker Farm Journal

[elevan]

I wish mine would stop I'm at 5 broodies. I had to add some temporary nest boxes for the other girls!

 

[SmallFarmGirl]

I wish mine would stop I'm at 5 broodies. I had to add some temporary nest boxes for the other girls!

I know ! I've got this one hen who's a s stubborn as a ... Hen. She'll sit on nothing!

 

[redtailgal]

Small farm girl, what type of hens do you have? And do you have a roo?

Sometimes you can manipulate a hen to going broody, but you'll need to have a roo. Silkies, Orps, Jersey Giants.....they all went broody pretty easy for me. But Rocks, RIR, and Sexlinks just would not do it.

If you are wanting them to go broody, try giving them some chopped bell peppers, and try providing one nest box separate from the others, a little higher up and in a darker place. To this nest box add a couple plastic eggs (colorful plastic easter eggs are ok, but if you can find some wooden "dummy eggs" that would be best). Once you see a hen in the box, place a curtain over it for 24 hours, being sure to offer food and water 3x a day for 24 hours, then take the curtain off. Leave her alone for a day........if she stays on the nest, put your hand near her. If she hackles up or pecks at you, back off and dont bother her.

 

[SmallFarmGirl]

Thanks! I don't have a roo and I don't want anyone to be broody. It's this one hen though. Marshmellow. She will sit and guard anything. AND not eat or drink.
(Rarely)
She'll stay on the nest all day and night. She's A (miniature?) RIR. Ohhh... If I had the room I'd have more broodies then... A hatchery!

 

[Mamaboid]

Thanks! I don't have a roo and I don't want anyone to be broody. It's this one hen though. Marshmellow. She will sit and guard anything. AND not eat or drink.
(Rarely)
She'll stay on the nest all day and night. She's A (miniature?) RIR. Ohhh... If I had the room I'd have more broodies then... A hatchery!

Send Marshmellow to me, I need broodies, bad. I would like to sit about 5 or 6 hens with 6-8 eggs a pc. Can't get one to go broody to save my butt.

 

[Roll farms]

Em, the best way I ever found to 'break up' a broody was to steal their stash of eggs and put them on wire (in a cage) pretty early into the 'brooding' phase. Apparently it's not as comfy to sit on wire as it is on a cushy nest.

We used to have 140 hens, and lots of 'broody' breeds, I'd go broke (sold eggs / chicks) waiting for them to go un-broody, so learned the wire trick.

Just in case you get more broodys and need to stop the insanity.

 

[elevan]

Thanks Roll. I could have a couple more go broody and be ok...but more than a couple and I'll have to try your trick

 

[elevan]

Oh...we're getting rabbits. Silly froo froo rabbits.

More details when I get the details...

 

[autumnprairie]

wow I have missed alot. Good Luck on your meeting I hope you get her good we all got your back Em. Yay for new chick it's cute. yay for rabbits

 

[elevan]

Crazy, busy day.

We dewormed the calf, the horses and the goats that needed it.

We worked on cleaning and converting our old chicken coop into a brooding area for the turkeys that are coming (then it will be switched to a goose coop).

We added roosts to the chicken coop cause the guineas have decided to take over an entire section of the coop and the chickens are not allowed to roost anywhere near them I plan to build a hoop coop for the guineas this fall and come winter they will be confined to it for 6 weeks so that they imprint there.

My last Barnevelder went broody last night...since she was still setting tonight I pulled the eggs she was setting on and replaced them with duck eggs.

I'm slowly starting a supply of guinea eggs and kind of hoping for 1 more broody to stick them under