Broody Chickens

I had someone ask me questions on Instagram about topics to write about. One of the topics was broodiness in a flock without a rooster. I thought to myself oh my, we don't have breeds that typically go broody...except Luna. Luna is a Copper Marans x Cream Legbar. Marans are known for being broody and Legbars are not. Little did I know that Artemis, my sweet and cheerful Cream Legbar, would be the first hen to go broody in my flock.

I found Artemis to be broody when collecting eggs. She got all spikey and GROWLED at me. For those of you who have followed us for awhile, you have seen me rock Artemis to sleep. Growling is the last thing she would normally do. I had to go to my second job, but when the Bearded Claw came home he checked on her. She did the same thing to him. Hours later, I came home from work and set up the breaker.

Update: We were able to break Artemis in 3 days. It was easy to see that she wasn't ready because of the noises she was making. She was also not behaving like her sweet self. Having Artemis growl at me wasn't normal for her. I did floof her breast feathers a bit just to put cooler air under her. She did come round quick. Since we broke her, she hasn't laid eggs, but this is normal. She should return to laying once her hormones regulate themselves.

Artemis, the Cream Legbar is broody

Ever since I knew getting chickens was a reality, I researched everything I could. I would pour over books and forums trying to absorb as much as possible. There is SO MUCH GARBAGE OUT THERE! I found the blog of the Chicken Chick. I liked her no nonsense approach. To me, she is very practical. I will tell you about her method in a minute. She was part of why I was inspired to create this blog. I wanted to give advice based on what we have at the moment and could be used by people around the world, not just America. 

So onto the Broody Hen...

What NOT to do

Artemis is an angry, puffy pancake

Broodiness is created by hormones. It's baby fever so to speak. All that is on a broody hen's mind is to hatch eggs. A broody hen will sit...and sit...and sit. This means that she is not eating or drinking like she should. She will only get up to grab a quick drink, a small bite to eat, and to poop. This is like once a day. A broody hen can lose up to 20% of their body weight. It's not healthy and it's super hard on their bodies. They are susceptible to parasites, infections, and illness in their weakened state. THE WORST THING YOU CAN DO IS LET A BROODY HEN SIT WITH NO CHANCE OF HATCHING EGGS!

Don't chase her out of the nest box. She will go back. Baby fever causes one track minds! It will stress your bird even more.

Don't dunk her in cold water. Don't stick frozen things under her. Chickens' bodies are 105-107F (40.6-41.7 C). How cruel is that?

What you can do

If you do decide to let your broody hatch eggs, label the eggs so you know how long they've been under her. 21 days is the period it takes to hatch an egg, don't let her sit too much longer than that. REMEMBER HOW STRESSFUL THIS IS ON THEIR BODIES.

You can graft day old chicks to the broody. What this means is that you will slip baby chicks under her while she's sleeping so she thinks she hatched her eggs. This doesn't always work. We know many that want to be mothers, and aren't cut out for it. Be prepared to raise the chicks yourself if the broody attacks or abandons the chicks. You will have to use day old chicks, broody hens won't always accept slightly older ones.

The Broody Breaker Method and what we are trying

The Chicken Chick recommends immediately breaking up a broody hen if hatching eggs isn't going to happen. She recommends placing the broody hen in a dog kennel or rabbit hutch with a wire bottom floor to allow the hen to cool her brood patch. This is called the Broody Breaker.

Artemis and Luna in Club Med: Broody Breaker

I don't have a rabbit hutch or dog crate with a wire bottom. I have my med tent. It's a foldable dog kennel that I have for emergencies. 

I brought Artemis in last night in the dark. I put her in the med tent with Luna. I was worried about reintegration later and stressing her more by being alone. There is a perch, food, and water. They are in my office and I am going in and out of the room on a regular basis and I have left the lights on in the room. I can tell Artemis is still broody this morning, she's doing that weird growl and puffing up still. It's cute to see her temper tantrum. I'm hoping to put her back in the flock in a day or so. We will see. I will update as this unfolds!

Update: We were able to break Artemis in 3 days. It was easy to see that she wasn't ready because of the noises she was making. She was also not behaving like her sweet self. Having Artemis growl at me wasn't normal for her. I did floof her breast feathers a bit just to put cooler air under her. She did come round quick. Since we broke her, she hasn't laid eggs, but this is normal. She should return to laying once her hormones regulate themselves.

To read about the Chicken Chick's Method: https://the-chicken-chick.com/broody-breaker-when-hens-mood-to-hatch/

Sources: Backyard Chickens Forum, The Chicken Health Handbook by Gail Damerow, The Chicken Chick's Guide to Backyard Chickens by Kathy Shea Mormino , Google....and I don't want to credit the websites who are giving that terrible advice...just know that there's a lot of nonsense to sift through.

Determined to stop being broody