CountingChickens
Songster
Hello! So I do not plan on expanding my flock until the spring of 2023, but my excitement has led me to ask this question. If and when one of my hens goes broody during this time, and hasn't been a mother to chicks before, will it be okay to purchase chicks and see if she will mother them?
I do not want a rooster, therefore, fertilized eggs cannot be a thing. But I read that a broody hen can be "snuck" baby chicks while she is sleeping and become their mother. This would mean my hen has never mothered chicks before as this is my first flock. I would keep a day's watch on the hen to be sure she is properly mothering the chicks and continue to keep an eye out. In the case of abandonment or worse, I would have a brooder ready. Has anyone ever had a hen become a surrogate mother to chicks without ever being a mom before?
I do not want a rooster, therefore, fertilized eggs cannot be a thing. But I read that a broody hen can be "snuck" baby chicks while she is sleeping and become their mother. This would mean my hen has never mothered chicks before as this is my first flock. I would keep a day's watch on the hen to be sure she is properly mothering the chicks and continue to keep an eye out. In the case of abandonment or worse, I would have a brooder ready. Has anyone ever had a hen become a surrogate mother to chicks without ever being a mom before?