Foster Mom?

[MonkeyZero]

Hey well, I got a call about 2 secs ago. I have a friend who has a few 3-4 week old TINY Bantam Gold Necks. She is moving next month into an apt. She cant take. Well I have a broody hen. When do you think I can put the foster with her?

 

[jessica117]

Is she sitting on eggs right now? If so, how long till they hatch?

 

[Dawn419]

I'm thinking that 3 - 4 week old chicks are a bit too big to try and fool a broody hen with, as opposed to day-old chicks.

Dawn

 

[CarriBrown]

Hey, it's worth a shot. My cochin, Tina, will take in ANYTHING when she's broody. I can (and I have) dump 2 week olds in with her in the middle of the day and she calls them right over. She may be an exception, though.
Put them in there at night when she's asleep, but be prepared to remove a very angry hen if she figures out those aren't hers!

 

[MonkeyZero]

The eggs make hatch the first week of June. THe banties are SOOOOOO tiny, like day olds.

 

[jessica117]

You're going to have to wait till the eggs hatch then slip them in. If not, I'd assume she'll leave the nest of eggs and go raise the new babies.

 

[MonkeyZero]

So, are banty chicks gonna stay tiny. When is the best time to slip them under? While they hatch?

 

[jessica117]

I would wait till the eggs hatch. That night after your hen goes to sleep, slip them in under her. Be sure and be up first thing in the morning though to make sure she accepts them. You could even plan on waking up that morning an hour or so before dawn and slip them in then. That way you can observe them waking up and make sure it all works out.

Jess

 

[chookboy]

I don't see why not... its worth a try

I got one RIR hen who hatched out 2x chicks but she wasn't a good mother and abandon her chicks at only 5 weeks of age. My batam hen who I let her hatched 8x RIR standard baby chicks three weeks later than the RIR mother hen took these two baby in without any problem (No, I didn't even put them with her, because of the cold the 2x chicks just hang out with this mother batam + her babies to keep warm). Its kind of funny becoz now at week 6 only 3x out of 10x chicks can fully fit under her tiny little body. The 2x 6 weeks old RIR chicks are half the size of this mother batam but they refuse to leave her side.