2 Part Question

[trista85]

Ok, so I'm still a chicken-noob. I think one of my hens is broody. I have a wyandotte and she's been in the nest box for most of the day today. I opened the lid to see what she was up to, and when I reached out to pet her she fluffed up her neck feathers and made a weird noise at me while trying to bite me. This hen is almost 1 year- she was part of a group of 8 that we got last May as day olds. Is she too young to be broody? They are my first round of hens so I have no experience with this.

Then, today I impulsively bought 4 "assorted bantam" chicks at TSC because... I'm addicted and they're adorable. So the heart of my question is- if my hen IS broody, can I encourage her to "adopt" them? I've read that if she is broody I should separate her anyway, can this be done successfully or is the timing off since I already have the babies and she may have only been like this for a day?

Thank you!!

 

[HenHouse4Life]

I would wait her out. She is still fairly young herself. Give her another few days to see if she is truly broody, she may just be having a moment lol. Is she sitting on eggs?
When you discover that she is indeed broody and is sitting on a clutch, yes, you can separate her with her own food and water

 

[trista85]

I would wait her out. She is still fairly young herself. Give her another few days to see if she is truly broody, she may just be having a moment lol. Is she sitting on eggs?
When you discover that she is indeed broody and is sitting on a clutch, yes, you can separate her with her own food and water

Thanks! I do think that she is sitting on eggs that some of the others laid today since I only found 1 in a different box- she's in the "favorite" box. I was wondering if it was too early, but she's definitely got an attitude tonight! I guess we will wait and see!