Broody Hen 🐓🐣🐓🐣

[upstater]

I have a hen who has been sitting on eggs for two days. She’s a great broody hen and mother. I swore I would never raise baby chicks again I would have her do it. Well I got super excited and ordered some Amerucauna baby chicks that are supposed to be arriving this Wednesday. I was wondering if she could be fooled into thinking she hatched these chicks by removing her eggs replacing with chicks. Will it work or will she kill the chicks? Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks

 

[Weeg]

She's only been incubating for 3 days? You'd need to wait for the 17-21 day mark to give her the babies. She'll reject them because she knows its to early in incubation for them to hatch.

 

[aart]

Best to wait until she's been sitting for a couple weeks.
But you might get away with it if she's been good before.
I've read it's best to sneak them in behind her after dark.
Have Plan B ready tho.

 

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

Giving the chicks to your broody well after dark will be your best chance for acceptance. Place the chicks in a temporary brooder with food and water the day you receive them. Later that night, put the chicks behind her and underneath her tail. Do so in complete darkness. Give her a few chicks at a time, & wait a bit to see if she accepts them. Watch/listen carefully for approx. 30 minutes to an hour immediately after you give her the chicks, to make sure she doesnt reject and even begin to kill them. If all seems well, be waiting to check again just before sunrise. If your broody seems accepting and tidbits the chicks to food the next morn, you can count the adoption a sucess. (The chicks wont actually need mama hen to show them where the food is since theyve already been in a brooder, but she will do so anyway out of instinct).

Ive had a lot of broody hens, & have given many of those broodies feedstore chicks. That includes some hens who have only been setting on eggs for a few days. Some accept & adopt chicks readily, while others want no part of chicks they didnt hatch themselves. You wont know unless you try! If your broody accepts these chicks, she will likely accept & adopt chicks in the future also. Likewise, if she rejects these chicks, she is the type of mama hen who only wants chicks she has incubated and hatched. Good luck, & let us know how it goes.