SIlkie hatched eggs, chicks died, can I give her other chicks

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chickengeorgeto said:
The problem that you are encountering is that you are looking at the problem as a human problem.  Chickens are not humans and they never will behave like a human.  It is crazy to expect that they will act human.  The problem is that you are unable to communicate how you expect the hen or the chicks to act.  Even if you could speak poultry it still would not matter, hens and chicks have an inbred response to each other and unless they bond from the first second, the chances are that they never will.  . 
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In reading the posts it sounds like hen and chicks HAVE accepted each other. Many times I have had hens and chicks bond as a family unit long after hatching. As a matter of fact, I have a serama chick (4 weeks old) that has been accepted by another hen today when the mother quit being "mother". The chick in my avatar.
 
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That isn't the question. The question is how many times has a hen accepted strange chicks, especially when her own chicks have not met an untimely end? Then if the chicks that she adopts are younger than her own biddies will she extend her mothering until the younger chicks are independent or will the hen revert too quickly to the way she acted before she went broody?
 
Actually Im rather surprised to report that all is well! It was probably a 24 hour wait with the chicks in a small enclosure with the hen but the hen has adopted them and the chicks her. The first 24 hours I really didn't think it was working but then the next morning I found the chicks under the hen. Today they have been out free ranging all day and she looked after them, keeping them warm and safe. She even adopted another 6 week old chick lol. I have put them back in the small box tonight, inside. I even put the 6 week old chick in there and she is sleeping under the hen. Im so happy it has worked out
 
livingshel said:
Actually Im rather surprised to report that all is well! It was probably a 24 hour wait with the chicks in a small enclosure with the hen but the hen has adopted them and the chicks her. The first 24 hours I really didn't think it was working but then the next morning I found the chicks under the hen. Today they have been out free ranging all day and she looked after them, keeping them warm and safe. She even adopted another 6 week old chick lol. I have put them back in the small box tonight, inside. I even put the 6 week old chick in there and she is sleeping under the hen. Im so happy it has worked out
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That's great. I thought there might be a chance when you posted the hen was hanging out with the chicks and they were going in and out from under her.:thumbsup

A six week old chick should be old enough not to need a mother. There's a chance that having that old of a chick, the hen might leave the other chicks too early.
 
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A little update, the hen did accept the chicks, including the older one. They are doing great :D Now Im trying to figure out if I have Roos or hens.
 

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