The day my broody hen finally gave up | Backyard Chicken Keepers

Fiona Webb · 2026-04-04T20:50:04.246356+00:00

My Buff Orpington, Bertha, had been sitting on a clutch of fake eggs for a solid 28 days, refusing to budge. I was about to try the broody breaker cage trick, but then a huge thunderstorm rolled through on Tuesday. The noise and rain must have spooked her, because when I checked after it passed, she was off the nest and back with the flock, eating and drinking like nothing happened. Has anyone else had weather break a broody spell?

the_mila5mo ago

Sounds like a pretty low stakes chicken drama.

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holly635mo ago

Funny how a big shake-up can reset the whole system. You see it with people too, stuck in a pointless routine until some outside event forces a change. Like a power outage making you actually talk to your family, or a canceled flight leading you to explore a random town. Bertha just needed a good scare to remember there's a whole world of food out there.

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dakota4794mo ago

@holly63 Bertha's thunderstorm wake-up call reminds me of something I read about chickens needing novel stimuli to break out of their loops.

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