[Roxy]

Cannot remember ever having as many as this all at once.  Wonder if it was that long dry, hot spell of weather (now ended, and pouring with rain every day!)

Its getting to the point we will have more broodies that laying hens.  I have loaned a silkie and a bantie to a neighbour to sit on some game eggs.   There is a light sussex hen sitting on some duck eggs for another neighbour in one of my huts.  Neighbour gave me some cream leghorn eggs in exchange for sitting the duck eggs, and they are divided between two banties in another hut.  I have counted up today and there are another 8 bantams and two big hens broody.  I discovered the black silkie today happily sitting on three eggs on top of our carriage

May sit some of the bantams, if only to get them out of the nest boxes for a while ..........does my head in listening to all the clucking and squawking, not to mention to bites they give me.

[sabrina]

I wish just one of mine would go broody but no luck so far, at this rate we will have to bring out the incubator.

[Roxy]

And I wish mine would stop being broody and go back to laying, as my egg customers are not happy with the decreased number of eggs

[Sylvia]

A lot of mine are also broody Never mind, it's not for long and they'll soon start laying again

[It-needed-a-home]

i had a broody who hatched 9 eggs and she abandonned the chicks so had to put them in to the brooder now there in the garage in one of my breeding pens all doing fine,

the second one went broody so i bought some eggs to get some fresh stock and put them under her she sat on them for 3 days then got up and left 

oh well

can win them all suppose

 

[Roxy]

Hens are funny creatures ......some of them will only sit on eggs in THEIR  chosen place, not yours - even if is open to the elements, foxes etc. Some will sit a couple of days, then decide to do a runner, which is not good if you have no other broody (obvously I have plenty in reserve!) or incubator.

Yesterday, I thought I may as well put eggs under some of the broodies if only to stop them hogging the nest boxes.  I put a buff sussex on 8 hen eggs and she sat down on them no fuss at all.  Two wyandotte banties have been sitting together so put them together on two lots of eggs in a big hen crate, and both kicked off and demanded to get out ......and went right back to where they came from, so have put eggs under them where they are, and see what happens!!

[bamford6]

i always let them have chicks to reward there services .i start getting them in condition at Christmas time i then get the eggs in the  incubate  for there first hatch which is the second week off January the first sale is march the 6th .iff all goes well with the wether chicks for the end off the month this yere it was February but we have hatched more this yere than eney other we also have had good lambing 190 out off 200 rare breeds so the hens please them selves .

[Roxy]

Ours do not lay in the winter, so struggle to get enough eggs together until spring.  And, in the back of my mind, I am sure the birds should lay a few eggs before you start sitting them - is this cos they would not be fertile, even with a cockerel runnng with them all the time?

[bamford6]

iff the hens are in condition and the light is right they will lay .i would get some leg bars welsh summers they will lay through the winter

[Roxy]

Thank you for that info, Bamford!!  Not getting as many eggs as usual even though its summer, due to all the broodies......and I tend to keep the old girls till the end, so quite a few aged hens have dropped off their perch recently.  Time for some pullets  I think!!

[Hermit]

My turkeys are broody for the first time. We have three on nests and one territorial stag. He is only protecting his hens but it does make going through their pen to the veg garden fun! No broody hens yet, one broody duck on duck eggs. We have just hatched a load from the incy, trust them to go broody when you had two incubators on for a  month!

[bamford6]

i took birds dawn to backewell on the 9th off april and was in darbey for the weekend i could off dropt you some in for  £4 pound each then went to the sales in preston will be in nuneaton in august iff you had 10 or 12 it would be ok all the best

[Blinkers]

And I wish mine would stop being broody and go back to laying, as my egg customers are not happy with the decreased number of eggs

Ditto.

I just get back into the swing of being able to supply everyone.....and then the dern things decide to go broody 

[Roxy]

Bamford, if you were in Derby, you were not too far away from here ......my OH used to travel to work there every day. And Bakewell is about 15 miles from us .....  You did have a Bakewell pudding I hope .....!!!

[bamford6]

i went on a grand national week end my friend got married in the morning and then went to the pub for the race then to a nother pub for tea