Can a full size hen handle bantam chicks?

[nes]

Lost out little Cochin boy this morning (no idea what happened, just dead this AM), he's about 4 weeks old and if we only lost one chick out of 11 we bought at auction, well I was expecting to loose more.

ANYWAY. I can't get Henny to stop brooding so I'm giving in & getting her some babies. Could I give her some Cochin eggs along with BPRs or something?

Is that a bad idea?

 

[Judy]

I'm not really sure what you mean. If you want to mix breeds of eggs, that's fine. It's also fine to put bantam eggs under a full size hen.

 

[nes]

Quote:
That's exactly what I mean

Thanks!

Can I mix Bantams & Standards and give them to her?

 

[vfem]

A mama hen will hatch ANYTHING and call them her own if that's what you mean. She should be able to hatch standards, bantams or even ducks and raise them with no concern for how they look. My silkies hatch and raise ANYTHING!

 

[nes]

It won't bother her that she has different sized eggs?

 

[Judy]

Nope.

It MIGHT affect the hatch rate, though -- I really don't know about this. They pull breast feathers, and I've always thought this was so the breast would come into better contact with the eggs. Perhaps the sizes will be close enough it will work out fine.