Broody Chickens

[Equilibrium]

I lusted for 1 forever. Then... I got 1 and she sure came in handy when I ended up with a bunch of Kildeer eggs that I needed a temporary foster mom for. Problem is.... my rooster was killed and I don't have any fertile eggs for her to sit on and I can't buy any at this time of year because it's too hot to ship fertile eggs. It's been a month since the Kildeer eggs went to the rehabber and I found this, "long periods of broodiness can take their toll on her health and so it is sometimes necessary to take action to stop her being broody". Sure enough.... I weighed her and she's lost 6.5 oz and I'm getting a little concerned. Soooo.... I need to do something about it. Doozer mentioned something about dipping em in cold water. I looked it up and found this at the same site I found the comments about broodiness taking a toll on their health, "Another method common in 'the old days' which is still sometimes used is to dunk her in a pail of cool (but not really cold) water which will bring her brooding temperature down and perhaps make her indignant enough to give up on being broody altogether", Raising Chickens : Keeping Chickens in your Backyard: How To Stop A Broody Hen From Staying Broody. They even had a little video of somebody dipping a hen. At that same site they mentioned using dog kennels as detention centers and removing them from the nests several times a day to break their broodiness. I don't want to use a detention center because that'll throw off the pecking order. Repeatedly removing her from the nest would probably wear me down.
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It's looking like the dip method is gonna be the easiest. My question is how many days does it take to break them of their broodiness on average. I need to know so I can figure out when to start dipping.

[biigblueyes]

Originally Posted by Equilibrium

I don't have any fertile eggs for her to sit on and I can't buy any at this time of year because it's too hot to ship fertile eggs.

If shipping is the only reason - have you looked on Craigslist?

[Equilibrium]

Craigslist is loaded.... problem is I'm going for a closed flock and even though they'd be eggs.... there's still some ickies and nasties that could be brought in to my birds on the eggs. I've learned enough in the past coupla years that it's really important to buy from reputable people who use vets and vaccinate for Marek's like I do. I'd be too afraid of buying eggs or chicks from a hobbyist which is what most of the folk selling on Craigslist are. On an aside.... most of the folk selling Ameraucanas on Craigslist are really selling Easter Eggers which is a problem too. I know this is gonna sound funny but.... when I go to a poultry swap to learn and talk with others.... I leave and strip my clothes off when I get home and put em in a plastic bag and walk em straight to the washing machine and I don't take tours of other people's chicken coops anymore... I don't want to bring anything home with me. The chickens I have are healthy and my vet's got me on a schedule for deworming and such and I just don't want to risk it. I definitely wish Oprah woulda gone broody back in early spring. Her timing was off is all.... way off since it's been in the 90's around here.

[Doozerdoo]

First off she is fine, no really she is fine. ... I dipped mine in water 2 times, it did not work, why you ask ? Well all she wants is to be a mother.. I tried everything and the only thing that finally worked was to put her in a dog carrier at night, and lock out of the coop during the day, which meant she was out of the pen eating grass during the day ( you could put yours in the tractor) and then in the carrier at night. Why did I stop her broodiness, well she had already raised chicks, and I was not getting eggs from her, 10 weeks of no eggs, to long to go and I wanted her to stop. She broods all the time so I'm not getting eggs and that's my whole reason for chickens. But broody chickens will not die, she can brood for ever and if there is food and water in the coop she is fine. Most want there chickens to produce eggs not sit and puff up and not be productive. In the carrier she did not loose her pecking order, she came out of it fine and it was like hey, we missed you where we're you lol. Now being broody she would not let anyone in the nest box I had made large enough for lots of birds, she literally refused to let them in so they started laying all over the place, since then I have gotten some terrific nesting boxes and she now chose one of those. She is laying again finally, but now I have another going broody. Thank goodness my pullets are coming up now to lay and I just got eggs from one pullet after 19 weeks of the
Last week. do not worry bout your broody, either gve her one egg to hatch, or let her come out of it on her own if you can go with out the eggs. First time girls usually do not take that long to pop out of it. You could bath her, if you want her to come out of it though.
I plan to put astrolorp eggs under my girl this next spring, I find that no chicken lays as well as these girls and that's what I want. Hoping you can either get some good eggs to put under her to raise up and a big old fat rooster comes out of the mix

[Doozerdoo]

It's looking like the dip method is gonna be the easiest. My question is how many days does it take to break them of their broodiness on average. I need to know so I can figure out when to start dipping.

. The first time my girl went broody it was like 12/15 days no biggie I took her out of the nest several times a day and she ate and drank lots and went back to the nest... The second time I did the same thing but it took much longer, she just did not want to stop brooding and I had no eggs for her, the third time I finally gave her eggs from a local farmer who had a closed flock. Her birds were very fat and healthy.
This last time took me a very long time, and I finally had to intercede more then I had previously done. Dips in cool water. ( used a small plastic bin.) she did not mind it at all and just sat in it. Afterwards I left her out of the pen and coop for the day. The moment she got back into the coop she was back in the nest, fluffed up and squawking like she owned the whole coop. Next day dip again, nope nothing. She even got more broody. So I blocked her from the nest boxes during the night and she would not let one boRd sleep. She literally went nuts trying to et in a nest. That's when I had to cage her, she just would not let anyone rest. She ran them off the roosts and screamed. Keeping her out of the nest box 2 days and 2 nights in the pen finally worked.

[Equilibrium]

Ok.... this sucks. There's no easy way out so a "combo" approach it is!!! When I get home tonight I'll dip Oprah and put her in the "detention center" for the day then I'll block off all the nest boxes and put her back in the coop at night where she'll be safe then.... repeat the process until she lays an egg. Gotta run.... more later!!!

[Doozerdoo]

dip her, let her loose in the tractor and then put her in a cage at night, she may pop out sooner can you not get her a few eggs and put her some where to sit on them? I mean just a few eggs for fun. its so adorable to see mama care for them. or buy a few males from on line and just slip them under her? this way you can get some roosters and she can raise a few chicks.

[Equilibrium]

When I got home I dipped her. Just for the heck of it.... I let her go in the run after I "cooled" her down. The minute I put her down.... she bee-lined it for the coop and got in a nest box soooo..... to the detention center she went. I blocked off all the nest boxes and moved her into the coop for the night.
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I've got something funny to tell you. Our birds are all large fowl so there's no way I was gonna even try "dipping" Oprah in a 5-gallon bucket so I filled up a camping cooler and lowered her into the cooler. Here's where it gets funny.... I pulled her wings away from her body to get her nice and wet and realized she was floating just like a duck. I took my hands away and she didn't sink. I didn't realize chickens floated!!! I knew they could swim but I guess I never thought about them being able to float on water like a duck and especially not the large fowl breeds. It was the funniest thing looking at Oprah calmly floating in the cooler as if she didn't have a care in the world. I should take a photo tomorrow morning. I'm sure she'll bee line it for a nest box the minute I open em up so I'll have to dip her again and stick her into the detention center for the day. I actually thought about grabbing my camera but it was too late when I got home and already lighting wasn't the greatest.

[Doozerdoo]

Originally Posted by Equilibrium

When I got home I dipped her. Just for the heck of it.... I let her go in the run after I "cooled" her down. The minute I put her down.... she bee-lined it for the coop and got in a nest box soooo..... to the detention center she went. I blocked off all the nest boxes and moved her into the coop for the night.
--
I've got something funny to tell you. Our birds are all large fowl so there's no way I was gonna even try "dipping" Oprah in a 5-gallon bucket so I filled up a camping cooler and lowered her into the cooler. Here's where it gets funny.... I pulled her wings away from her body to get her nice and wet and realized she was floating just like a duck. I took my hands away and she didn't sink. I didn't realize chickens floated!!! I knew they could swim but I guess I never thought about them being able to float on water like a duck and especially not the large fowl breeds. It was the funniest thing looking at Oprah calmly floating in the cooler as if she didn't have a care in the world. I should take a photo tomorrow morning. I'm sure she'll bee line it for a nest box the minute I open em up so I'll have to dip her again and stick her into the detention center for the day. I actually thought about grabbing my camera but it was too late when I got home and already lighting wasn't the greatest.

LOL that's so funny, I would have loved to see her floating hee hee hee, guess what? my other buff is broody, will be a floating her tonight. she has become the evil one who growls lol, the sweetest hen has turned to Linda Blair ! either we must break her, or get a priest to excercize her lol. this chicken is not as mean as mine right now lol

[biigblueyes]

oooohhhhh - scary chicken!