I'm torn... leave baby out w/mama or not?

[edselpdx]

I'd be more tempted to put the babes from the brooder under mama than vice versa. It's much harder to create the right conditions for the babies in a brooder than just letting the mama do what she knows how to do. I slipped a couple of day-olds under my broody in August, and she's still taking care of them in the 40 degree rain today (they don't need warmth from her anymore, just protection from Artemis the bully hen.)

 

[NellaBean]

Yes, the eggs have to be at 99-101 to develop and incubate.....if she can get the eggs to hatching time, she can keep the babies warm. I have 4 broodies with babies right now. Only 1 has a heat lamp and that is because she is tiny and her chicks are HUGE and don't fit under her anymore. Your broody will do a good job and you should even try adding more chicks to her

 

[sonew123]

Its colder here and I have 3 broodies sitting on eggs-this will be my first time allowing broody's ( shoot ..even having broody's through winter) I dont intend on heating lamps near by unless it goes well below freezing-they are all in seperate nests and I plan on moving them and all their eggs to one big pen so they can swap chickies back and forth

should work they are all silkies.