If I buy a chick, will my hens attack it?

[Black Cochin Bantams]

I set some chicks under broody hens this summer to get them off the nests. The hens sat on nest for 1 more day then took chicks out and have been raising them. My rooster did not bother them but I did keep an eye on them. Finally moved them to a different pen because of feeding and watering issues (feeder and waterer were too high). I expect little trouble integrating them back into the original pen with the hen. If by themselves the other hens and rooster would kill them.

 

[Kountreefok]

In our old coop/run we had a couple hens (one at a time) hatch their own chicks. There was a roo or two (and...I know it's a no-no...but *shrug* a tom turkey). Never lost a chick.

Last season we incubated out chicks from our flock's eggs and integrated them into the main flock at about ten weeks. Usually integrating some staggered hatches together first so a larger group of chicks would join the flock en masse. Safety in numbers. We have a really mellow. and close knit multi-generational flock. No chick attacks.

This season same thing. No issues. But also let some broodies hatch out their own in the main coop and we synchronized some incubator hatches. An experiment to see if the mamas would accept those chicks, too. The day after hatch we went to move the mamas with babies into the brooder room and had to gather 2 mamas and 3 chicks from outside. They'd taken them out and were standing guard. No problems. The mamas---7 in all--accepted all the incubator chicks including a hatch that was about a week older. We integrated them plus 30 chicks at about 10 weeks with no problems. Except a bunch of our other hens going broody cuz they wanted babies, too.

The Girls, when broody, will also accept any eggs I put under them.

 

[Mrs. K]

If you have a broody hen, and she is serious, you have it made.

I have raised chicks within the flock several times, and will try not to do it any other way. I have hatched eggs and slipped chicks under her.

Make sure you have enough space, and make sure that there are obstacles, or hide outs in the run, I do let my layers free range quite a bit at first, but for the most part they ignore the chicks, and the chicks learn pretty quick to stay away from the layers, on the other side of mama.

This year when my chicks were 4 weeks old, something got the broody hen, but the flock was used to the remaining chicks, and there was no problem. mk