Can I add 2 new babies to a momma hen and her 2 babies?

[TooterBelle]

I have a sizzle bantam who is a wonderful broody and mother. She recently sat on 6 standard size eggs and hatched 2 of them herself. Once the chicks where dry, she got off the nest and left the other eggs that weren't ready yet. I moved the eggs to an incubator and I have 2 hatching as I type,(approx. 1 week after she hatched the other 2). My question is, can I add the new babies to the mother and her 2 babies?
Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[sumi]

You could try, but it's not a guaranteed that the hen is going to adopt them. I've successfully added chicks to hens' clutches in the past, so it's possible. What I found worked was when I put the chicks down near her and let them approach her. My hens took to the chicks immediately. On another occasion some of my chicks escaped from their outside brooder and joined a mom and her chicks. When I went looking for my chicks they were happily hanging out with the hen who didn't mind the new additions at all. Another method that I had some success with was approaching the hen with the chick(s) and letting the chicks cheep. She will hear the cheeps, think I'm messing with her babies and when I put the chick down she'd call it to come to her, which the chick instinctively did.

Give these methods a try, but be prepared to snatch the chicks quickly if she's not interested. Good luck!

 

[TooterBelle]

Thank you soo very much, I will definitely give it a try.