Broody hen: can I stick chicks under her now?

[starkist72]

I have a 1 year old who has gone broody. she spent about a week pulling her feathers out to line the nest and now she's been sitting for 3 or 4 days. I have rock eggs in the nests (for the pullets) and she's trying to hatch them

Now I also have six 1-week old chicks inside in my brooder, and I have my grow-out cage ready in the coop... but wouldn't it be sweet to let her be a mother?!

1-how long does a hen need to be broody? do i need to let her sit the full 21 days before trying to put chicks under her?
2- will chicks that have been in a brooder for over a week accept a "mother"?

 

[1muttsfan]

The answer to both is maybe. Your hen may not have been sitting long enough to accept chicks instead of eggs yet, and your chicks may be too old to make her feel like they are her babies. If you do try to put them under her, you will need to watch her very closely to make sure she does not reject, and possibly even injure or kill the chicks.