buying backed out on me, what are my options?

[MuskokaChick]

I have two hens sitting on a couple of eggs hatching (I took away the infertile ones last night) Day 22.

I have a 1 week old chick in the brooder
two day olds in the brooder with her
two in the incubator drying off
two eggs left to hatch.

The 3 in the brooder are my kids pets, but wondered if I should just keep the other new ones in the brooder or try to sneak them under the hen. Will she accept them? She already has one and maybe another one this morning, same age, if I do this, should I do it at night? or does it matter?

any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Will she accept them? They are living animals and anything can happen. I've never had one not accept them if they are close to the same age and that young, but some people have. I'm not going to tell you that she will absolutely, without a doubt, accept them, but I would do it.

I've done it during the night and during the day. Nighttime is probably better, especially if she is still on the nest and has her own little ones. Just slip them under her fairly late after she has settled down in the dark. Even when she had not hatched any herself, the broody accepted them.

I've done it a couple of different ways during the day. This is adding day old incubator chicks to a broody that has her own chicks the same age. I have just turned them loose near a broody and she accepted them. That is the most risky but it worked. A way I liked better was that when she brought her chicks off the nest, I collected her and put her in an enclosure. Then I collected her chicks and the incubator chicks, put them all in a box, then dumped them out near her. She took them all in.

I do think slipping them under her at night with as little light and commotion as possible, is the best way to go, but a good broody will probably accept them no matter how you do it. But with living animals, you do take a risk. They don't all read the same book.