[viettaclark]

I thought broodiness lasted about 3 weeks and then the hen started coming out of it? Galaxy is STILL broody after 5 weeks. Are Speckledy hens prone to it? I have been chucking her out of the coop every day and shutting the pop hole. She acts neurotically to start then settles down for the afternoon with the others apart from buzzing up and down the garden manically to check if the pop hole is open yet! It's actually quite hilarious the way she winds around my feet burbling and twittering to be let in! Her chest isn't hot any more and she's eating but when she gets into the coop it's STILL straight into the nest box, make a nest, fluff up and don't move.
But it's causing problems.
I have to leave the nest box available for the others to lay and lock it when I think I have all the eggs. She was vicious to the new girls trying to get in to lay (luckily the nest box is long enought for 2/3) and I thought Nestle had gone off lay. No......she's laying away! Found a nest behind the compost bin with 2 of her eggs. This is either because she doesn't want the confrontation or more likely I shut the pop hole before she was ready to lay!!
Now Kinder has started throwing bedding over her back!!! Does this mean Galaxy is coming out of it and Kinder is starting?
And during all this Bluebell (old girl) is laying a soft egg nearly every night which breaks through the rungs. Such a waste!!
I'm lucky I'm home and can spend time with them. Yesterday afternoon I noticed Phyllis (old girl) was on the ladder trying to get in. She only lays one egg a week but when I let her in (along with the broody!!) she laid again so that's 3 in 3 days.
I've had to lock Cadbury in so she can lay in peace and it all means going up and down the garden many time a day.
I've never had broodiness problems before. Does it manifest itself more often if the flock is bigger? I only had 3 hens before but have got 2x2 new girls over the year as I lost one and the two other oldies are not really laying. And you can't just introduce one so now I've got 6!!!!!
Phew!
Any suggestions to simplify my life, pleeeease?

[Lindeggs]

Unfortunately a determined broody will stick at it for a long time - if her eggs don't hatch she loses count of the days and just keeps sitting!

I would suggest a method I've heard works very well.  Put Galaxy in a wire-bottomed cage and sit it up on bricks so she can't settle down to brood.  Make sure she has plenty of food and water and is protected from the elements (wind, rain, direct sun).  It may seem cruel but it will put her off sitting and allow all the other hens to go about their business undisturbed. 

Let her out each day for a walk around, but the minute she settles down on the nest, put her back in the cage for the rest of the day.

I was also speaking to someone the other day who had a large nest box so she removed all the bedding from it, put in a couple of bricks, then put a wire oven rack on top of the bricks.  She said her hens all laid on the rack but the broody didn't settle on it.

[shetan]

another way is to use freezer ice blocks or rabbit cooling pods. after freezing, wrap in a towel (to stop freezing your girl) and place under bedding in nest box. it will cool her temperature down and should encourage her to get up and leave the nest.

this has worked for me.

best of luck.

[viettaclark]

I dunked her in a bowl of cold water today which actually worked for an hour or so. She stopped the manic neurosis and was peacefully scratching with the others. Then back to broody.
I think I'll try the ice packs in the nest box. If that doesn't work it's a cage.......listening Galaxy?
I can't be doin' with the worry!
Thank-you both for your suggestions.

[hillfooter]

another way is to use freezer ice blocks or rabbit cooling pods. after freezing, wrap in a towel (to stop freezing your girl) and place under bedding in nest box. it will cool her temperature down and should encourage her to get up and leave the nest.

this has worked for me.

best of luck.

I've also heard people advise this for hens too
HF

[shetan]

I've also heard people advise this for hens too
HF
[/quote]

haha....very funny....but it takes a lot more than a freezer block to cool me down HF!

[viettaclark]

It seems it will take more than a freezer block to cool down my broody! I put 2 large ones in after removing most of the bedding. They were wrapped in teatowels. Went back and she'd found a gap between them to sit. Sorted that and she STILL kept sitting although she was shivering a bit!!! Changed the blocks at bedtime and she was in the nestbox with Kinder (the one I thought might be going broody) The block she was on had defrosted and was positively hot!
Left them to it but surely she'll get ill?
I'll try it for a few days.....got enough blocks luckily to keep up a good supply. It doesn't seem to stop the others laying.

[hillfooter]

It seems it will take more than a freezer block to cool down my broody! I put 2 large ones in after removing most of the bedding. They were wrapped in teatowels. Went back and she'd found a gap between them to sit. Sorted that and she STILL kept sitting although she was shivering a bit!!! Changed the blocks at bedtime and she was in the nestbox with Kinder (the one I thought might be going broody) The block she was on had defrosted and was positively hot!
Left them to it but surely she'll get ill?
I'll try it for a few days.....got enough blocks luckily to keep up a good supply. It doesn't seem to stop the others laying.

I didn't find this technique successful either, nor the cold water dunking (whch I wouldn't recommend anyway) but the cage trick does do it if you try that.

HF

[viettaclark]

I can happily report that Galaxy is no longer broody!
Ice packs didn't work so took out all the nesting material and if she tried brooding I whipped her out and dunked her in a washing up bowl of cold water placed at hand. She was soaked but when dry STILL went into the nest box.
So I thought "Pavlov's dogs" and kept it up ALL DAY with quite long soaks.
Took 6/7 dunks but she was sorted by tea-time. Back to her normal self. I blocked off the nest box that night (unblocking it first thing) and the next day she was definitely not going to go there! (Hope she will when/if she decides to lay again!)
The laying-away hen was caught skulking round the compost bins and when all the bedding was back she was shown it was safe again and she laid in the coop.
And they're all much more settled although laying has slowed down now.
Phew!