[Jacinta]

I'm a newbie and my Rhode Rock Evil Edna has gone broody i think.  Came in from work to find her nowhere to be seen, she was in the nest box and stayed there until bedtime with no plans of moving.  I collected the eggs from under her and she puffed up and made strange noises.  I put some food and water by the nest box for her and she gobbled away!  There's just the 3 girls, no cockerel.  Does this mean she has stopped laying for now?  What should i do?  No space to get eggs to hatch and i work full time so can't police her too much.  Help with what to do please!  Wouldn't mind getting it sorted over the bank holiday before work on Tuesday.  Thanks.

[orchardlady]

Just love your hens name Jacinta!
The only way I've had success in breaking a broodie hen of her broodieness over the years is to put her into a cage (I use an old dog crate). Put it up on a brick at each corner and make sure she has food, water and some shelter from the elements, preferably in a shady spot to. Keep her cage within sight of the other birds so she doesn't become a stranger once you put her back with the gang. You can pop her back into the hen house over night but be firm and put her back in the cage the next morning first thing. The idea is to make life uncomfortable for her and for her to have nowhere that is remotely comfortable to settle down on. The cool breeze wafting around her nether regions and the new,temporarily uncomfortable lifestyle should sort her out. She will not be happy with this arrangement but harden your heart and try to ignore the sad little face . Do this for a minimum of three days, which should see you over the bank holiday weekend. Hopefully once you put her back with the other birds on Monday night she should have given up the idea of being broodie. However if she returns to the nest box I'm afraid you will need to repeat the above.

Other people may suggest dunking her bottom in a bucket of cold water. I've tried this in the past and not had any success but others may have.

Orchardlady.

[3Bluebelles]

If you have an area of their run you can fence off to keep her separate from the others (and away from the nesting box) then this has worked for us. It takes a few days, and she will be really angry with you, but make sure she has food and water, but nowhere comfortable to sit and nest, and just put her in with the others after dark. After a few days she will calm down and you will see when you let her back in the usual area that she doesn't go straight to the nesting box that she is over it.

All the best.

[Jacinta]

Cheers for that.  I can trap her in a separate part of the run as i built an extension, the other two can be in the run with the house in it.  Will Edna still lay at all?  Thanks lovely people.   

[3Bluebelles]

No she won't lay while she is broody. But if you keep her in with the others they won't lay either!

Hope she gets over it soon.

[Jacinta]

Well i got up and prepared the two runs with extra food and water for the separation today, Edna came out as usual and pottered about with the others.  I thought i'd just leave her until she tried to go back in the coop, but she's stayed out!  She's been out for 6 hours now, has she just stopped being broody on her own? 

[3Bluebelles]

Quite possibly. She's a hybrid bred specially for egg laying qualities, and they try to breed the broody genes out as it stops them laying. So they are less prone to becoming broody than a true breed. My Rhode Rock came out of her broody stage quite easily as well. It may take a few days before she starts laying again though.

Just keep an eye on her, but hopefully that's it, and you'll get lovely eggs again soon.

[curries]

It sounds like she has given up on her own then.  I have a broody hen and brought her out of the coop every morning for 3 weeks and shut the door after the others had laid, she still didn't give in, as soon as I opened the door she would be straight back in.  I even removed the next box and she just sat on the rubber floor bless her.  Eventually I gave in and got her some hatching eggs...due on Wednesday so I'm very excited!!

[Jacinta]

thanks so much everyone!  She stayed out all day and is back to her cheeky self, no egg from her though.  I've got enough in the fridge to feed an army so all in good time.  Cheers.