Any success stories of using Silkie for day olds when she has 2wk olds

[bobbieschicks]

okay I'm sure this is a pipe dream, but I'm wondering if anyone has had success merging day olds with a proven broody Silkie who already has had her latest brood for almost three weeks.

Let me explain. My partridge Silkie went broody. She's always been a great momma and welcomes chicks easily. She even steals chicks from other new mommas when she is broody. So I bought her 7 day old chicks (3 Buff Orpingtons, 3 Welsummers, and a Meyer Meal Maker) which she was successfully brooding in our coop with the rest of the flock. That was until our coop became the target of a hungry Black Rat Snake. By the time I caught (and killed) the snake she was down to only 2 chicks left (Welsummer and the Meyers Meal Maker that appears to be a Partridge Rock).

Today I've ordered 9 day old chicks (4 Buff Orpington, 4 Welsummer, Meyer Meal Makaer) to arrive sometime this week and I need to decide where to put them. They are absolutely not going in our house, no way I'm dealing with the mess of that again. I can brood them inside the coop in a cage under a lamp at night if needed for a couple of weeks until they feather out. Day time temps here in VA are 90s and nights are upper 70s, with high humidity. But I wondered about the possibility of slipping them under her at night as I presently am removing her from the upper nest box where she is roosting with her almost 3 week olds and putting her and the two chicks into a dog crate inside the coop at night for safety while I continue to snake proof our run.

Is it a pipe dream? Should I just abandon the notion of the perpetual broody in favor of the practical brooder box?

 

[ChickonLand]

I know my friend once had a broody Silkie with five day old chicks and gave her more one day old chicks to add to her little flock. I'd show her the chicks and see how she does. If the older and younger chicks get along with then you should be okay! The first time I got chicks after two weeks I went back to the feed store and got two more chicks. Since those two were almost two weeks younger then the rest, they tended to stick together. Just keep an eye on the babies and go from there. Good luck!

 

[bobbieschicks]

My Silkie attempted to attack me on Tuesday as I moved the day olds from their shipping box into a Tupperware box, so I knew there might be a chance she'd want these babies too. I've had them in the coop inside a brooder I built from an old table since Wednesday. Each night I've put a baby under her for just a few seconds to see how she would react and then I put the baby back in the brooder. I kept a heat lamp on the babies at night.

I deep cleaned the babies brooder today and decided to flip it upside down so that the wire is on the bottom and table top is now overhead. That was the way I designed it originally so that when they are older their poop and shavings could drop out the bottom. But then I decided the wire bottom would be too rough a surface and wasn't sure how to use it for them. So now that the wire is down i put paper towel as a base and shavings on that. Not sure if it will work this way in the long run, but I'm giving it a try.

I also removed the heat lamp despite the temps dipping into the mid 70s tonight. I know the babies will need a heat source so I'm taking a chance and letting the broody momma give it a try. She's been showing interest in the babies and taking care of them, so we will see how well she does.

I've been putting a baby under her at night for a bit to see how she would react and she just settles down and lets the baby move under her, the teen babies haven't been upset by the presence of the new babies so I feel pretty confident letting her take them over tonight. I moved her into the brooder pen and she eagerly settled down over the whole clutch, practically forgetting she has two older chicks. So I quickly snatched them up too and reunited everyone in the brooder.

Tomorrow will be the test as to whether it's a good fit or not. The light of day will show whether she's accepted them as hers. Because they are older now she will want to move around with her new (and old) babies out of the brooder. The babies will need to listen to her to be safe. But with everyone in the run together (bigs and littles) that might not work so good. So I will have to kick out the big chickens and let just the babies and teens hang out with momma inside the run until I'm sure she can take care of all her new brood.

Oh I do so hope it all works out because a broody raising them is so much easier on me.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Don't do it. You will find that in a few days that the mama hen will likely abandon the younger chicks if not actually kill them. Hens do not have a sense of logic. They only lay eggs to perpetuate the species and their whole life is ruled by hormones.

A hen will more readily accept chicks younger than her own because they are viewed as punching bags by both the hen and her older chicks. Younger and smaller chicks do not represent a threat to the hen's own brood. But most hens will wean their current brood at 3 to 4 weeks old. This will result in your youngest biddies becoming orphants.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Went out to check on the chicks and everyone is doing fine. I'll keep an eye on how momma does over the next couple of days and see if she's abandoning either the bigger or littler guys and if need be I'll take back over brooder patrol. But I'm fairly confident she will keep on being a momma to all the chicks as she has proven herself multiple times to be a good long term momma.

 

[bobbieschicks]

This morning I checked and all chicks were accounted for. The young babies were grouped in the corner of the brooder. The two big chicks and momma were eager to get out.

I let the bigs out into the yard to free range and closed their run to them. Then I opened the brooder door. Momma and the two babies g girls rushed out and didn't look back. The babies didn't try to follow. They just spread out in the brooder almost relieved.

So I'll use the broody at night only for the rest of this week and maybe next week but they shouldn't need the heat going forward after that with day temps in the 90s and night temps in the upper 70s.

With broody hens it's really a matter of timing.