ALTERNATIVE RUNS 233 
Broodiness means fewer eggs, and during all the time a hen is 
broody she has got to be fed, watered and cared for just the same. 
If not used for hatching, she is a dead loss during this period. 
Among the varieties which are apt to fall broody and remain in 
that state is the Orpington, Buff, White or Black. My experience 
of the Buff Orpington leads me to believe that she is second to 
none as a sitter, and is therefore the most difficult of all to get 
out of the broody stage. Light Sussex are also good mothers and 
therefore stubborn creatures to get rid of the desire to hatch their 
eggs. But, generally speaking, all heavy breeds are prone to 
broodiness at certain seasons of the year, and if eggs are wanted a 
watchful eye has to be kept upon them. The broody state is not 
all loss, because if a bird hatches a brood she is giving her ovaries 
a rest, and the chances are that she will not be so long between her 
laying periods, but all the same the poultryman can only think 
of the potential loss in eggs while his bird hugs the nest and will 
not leave it. 
Now the question is: What is the best and speediest cure for 
broodiness ? Some people aver that there is no absolute cure 
and that all one can do is to shorten the period. While there may 
be no absolute cure for the individual hen, there is no doubt that 
broodiness can eventually be bred out of the race. This can only 
be accomplished by never hatching the eggs of a hen that has shown 
signs of broodiness, but it will be a very long time before the 
majority of the heavy breeds have the tendency rooted out of 
them. 
In the meantime we have to deal with things as they are. What 
is one to do when a hen goes broody ? A variety of expedients 
have been tried, but I know of nothing better than removing the 
bird at once to the open air and placing her in a coop of which 
the bottom and front is made of wire, say, with a one-inch mesh. 
By this means she has constant currents of cool air passing over 
her night and day. Nor can she sit comfortably on the wire. 
She will get up and fidget and change her position and generally 
do anything but sit still. This is precisely what is wanted. If she 
cannot “sit ’’ she will soon recover from broodiness. It is better 
