Broody hen

Hello - We have broody hen who has been broody about a month. We bought some fertilized eggs to put under her, but they did not hatch. It's been 27 days and I know they're supposed to hatch after 21. I'm pretty sure the eggs were not warm enough as they weren't always under her. So question is - what to do now? Would you remove the eggs and put her in a cage to try to break her broodiness?

Hello Joy!  

If she is still sitting tight, you could try another round of eggs and keep them warmer.  I have had birds sit a long time to get a hatch before they give up.



If the chicken is tired of being broody (getting off the nest more and more)
or if I am running out of time (winter is coming) ...

Then I will get day old chicks and put them under the hen at night.   I just stick them in one by one as I remove the eggs.

Listen for the little happy voices as they meet each other.  It is so sweet!

Hi Joy,
I can attest to hens sitting for a very long time before giving up.

I am curious about the eggs. If none of them hatched, it makes me wonder if they were not really fertilized or if the hen was not broody enough. An adult hen should be able to handle between 10 - 15 eggs depending on the breed. If she is completely broody, I would have expected the eggs to do something.

It might be worth candling the eggs to see if anything was developed. It would tell you if the eggs were partially developed but didn't hatch, which would indicate a heat or hen problem or if there is nothing, which would indicate a problem with the eggs you got.

Here is another thread talking about broody hens, ways to get them not broody, and whether you should or not. https://permies.com/t/259422/Broody-Hen-Considerations

I would definitely candle the eggs!

Joy Hancock wrote:Hello - We have broody hen who has been broody about a month. We bought some fertilized eggs to put under her, but they did not hatch. It's been 27 days and I know they're supposed to hatch after 21. I'm pretty sure the eggs were not warm enough as they weren't always under her. So question is - what to do now? Would you remove the eggs and put her in a cage to try to break her broodiness?

You are right, Joy: those eggs are 'duds'. You can crack and toss them on the compost pile.  You seem to want to break her from the brood, which is probably a good idea after so long: She deserves a break. Broodiness is dependent on the temperature of the hen [it is like they are running a fever]. If you need new chicks, you could just get some and place them near her and remove the eggs: her maternal instinct will kick in as they nuzzle up under her. As they get their true feathers, she will become more active, showing them what to eat, and that will break her broodiness as well, in a very natural way.
For her own good, you must break her from brooding, and it is hard, but for her own health long term, you must. Here is one of the best articles I've found on the topic:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/broody-breaker-when-hens-mood-to-hatch/#:~:text=It%20is%20important%20to%20'break,to%20return%20to%20egg%2Dlaying.
I must say, though that the rabbit hutch trick still takes a long time and isn't effective in warm weather. [In cold weather, it works really well]. If it is warm outside, you must use the "dunk" in cold water. [Just don't make the water ice cold. That's cruel]
Just cold water, but she will fight you. It takes about 2-3 minutes watch in hand to lower her temperature. Then put her outside [away from her nesting area] overnight if you can unless predators are around or just in a well lit area, or in the rabbit hutch, just to make sure the brooding cycle is broken. Do it long enough the first time or you may have to repeat.

In my experience, they will get off the nest eventually, if the eggs don't hatch.  But it takes quite a while.

Probably because they seem to end up with mites, so they get too itchy to stand being there...

A dusting of diatomaceous earth will kill the mites quickly (do not breathe the dust), but the chickens regularly dust bathe, probably for that very reason.

If you try to take the eggs, protect your arms and hands, as hens will usually try to peck you or whatever you get near them, with a vengeance.

Once you remove the eggs, the hens generally abandon the nest within 24 hours.