Did this hen reject this duckling?

[beccamama32]

Please help, first time hatcher.

This hen was sitting on duck eggs and one hatched. She pushed it away. It needs to be under her right?? Duckling is breathing, moving, peeping.

A different hen was sitting on it for weeks, then this hen took over her nest and we found the first hen some different eggs to sit on.

I just put the hatching duckling back under the original hen, who rolled it under her. I have been watching to make sure she doesn' attack it, so far so good.

Ahhh, was I right to move the egg? Do you think the original mama will be ok with this egg in her nest?? Had the other hen rejected this egg?

 

[alexa009]

It should be the original mother brooding her chick, a hen that hasn't been on the nest long might be inexperienced and won't properly brood the chick.

 

[beccamama32]

It should be the original mother brooding her chick, a hen that hasn't been on the nest long might be inexperienced and won't properly brood the chick.

Ok I put the egg with the original hen who had been on the nest for weeks. She was pushed off by the hen in the photo, who has only been on the nest for maybe a week or so. So new hen rejected it, and I put it under the original broody...so far she seems to be accepting it. But now I'll need to move all the eggs back under broody #1, so she can hopefully hatch out some more, and just hoping broody #2 doesn't steal the nest again.

I know we should have moved hen #1 to a private location, but we're new at this, nobody had been bothering her for weeks...ugh. So many mistakes. I was thrilled to see it hatching, then it turned to disappointment and dread when she rolled it away. *sigh*