New Experience - A Broody hen

[SMS6]

I only started keeping chickens last June so this is a new experience for me. Our youngest Hen - Roxy - has gone broody on us. She is only 10 months old and only came in to lay in January. Now she's stopped laying and has decided to sit tight on any egg that is layed by the others.

She is really nasty about it - has a go if we try to get the eggs, but we've just been donning the gardening gloves, picking her up firmly and removing her from the nest box or as it was yesterday from a corner she had rolled them in to thinking we might not notice - LOL

I'm hoping she will get bored of it all in a day or two. At least I'm going to be home for the next 4 days so may be able to distract her more by letting her free range.

[roitelet]

If you don't want to raise chicks then put her in the sin bin ie. somewhere where she can't get in the house and make herself a nest. I use an old nursery fireguard made into a rectangle and the tops flapped over to make a roof. This I put on the grass with some food and water of course. I put the chicken during the day and at night put it back in the house. After a few days of this treatment they go off the idea of being broody.

Best of luck

[chris]

day or two? hehe bit longer

now I just leave my broody to it, and shoo her out of the nestbox when I collect eggs. when they've finished laying I block the coop up so she can't get back in - but she'll go and find a corner to sit in.

[SMS6]

well other half is home today so he's let them out in to the garden and firmly insisted she goes with the others, then as they've all layed (except her) he's shut the pop hole on the house so she can't get in.

I think she's pecking around with the others

We don't have a cockeral so the eggs are no good to her and we don't have enough space to even consider hatching anything