How To Stop A Chicken From Being Broody So They Get Back To Laying Eggs
Some chickens get broody every year, whilst some don’t at all, but it can start as soon as they’re old enough to lay (around 5 to 8 months old).
A clucky hen will sit on her eggs for three weeks waiting for them to hatch, which means three weeks of no other laying.
If you break the broody habit, laying will usually recommence right away.
There are several ways recommended to stop a chicken from being broody and sitting on her nest.
The one we like to use is to isolate her from the nest to break the habit, we call this method as ‘chicken jail’.
If there is no intervention, the clucky hen could continue to sit on her nest for a few weeks!
How to implement the ‘chicken jail’ method to help broody chickens to restart laying
It’s a good idea to put the chicken in a small pen, with enough room to move around to get to their chicken feeder and drink water whilst making sure that they are comfortable and protected from bad weather.
What you will need:
- Small crate or pen separate from the other chooks
- A feeder that they can access without leaving the pen (like our standard chicken feeder)
- Water or water feeder they can access without leaving the pen
- Shelter from the sun/rain
After a few days away from her nest, release the chicken from jail and by now the cycle should be broken and she will go back to laying as usual.
Video #1: How to Stop a Clucky Chook – Part 1
Video #2: How to Stop a Clucky Chook – Part 2
Take a look at our automatic chicken feeders, or check out our blog for more helpful articles about raising chickens.