Can I entice a silkie to go broody?

[Tammys kevin]

I was given a turkey egg today, and I was wondering if I put my silkie hens in a box with half a dozen eggs will it entice them to go broody? It's spring here, and the days are hot and humid, am I able to move the box inside the house if it gets too hot, or will that put them off sitting on the eggs? When the egg hatches, will a silkie raise a turkey chick? This will be my first attempt at hatching

 

[sumi]

Setting eggs to tempt them into going broody might work. I've used "bait eggs" in the past to see if I can tempt my hens into going broody and I did have some success with it, but at the end of the day broodiness is triggered by hormones and though we all know Silkies have those in abundance it's not a guarantee that they will fall for it. It also comes down to the hens and how prone to broodiness they are normally. Some hens are more so than others. You have nothing to lose by trying though! Let us know it it works.

On whether or not a hen can raise a turkey poult I can't tell you. You will have to ask in the Turkeys section.

 

[Tammys kevin]

One of my silkies snuck inside and went broody on top of a wicker chest in my living room, has been sitting on the egg for 5 days now lol, i'm happy she is inside the house, its so hot and humid outside

 

[LTygress]

Haha! No need to entice her, I guess!

By the way, I use golf balls to get my hens to go broody. It helps me keep up with eggs that are laid in the meantime, too!

 

[Tammys kevin]

it was actually a surprise, its her first time going broody, and she was a rather aggressive little hen, was always bullying the 8 weekers