In need of opinions from my peeps!

[Suzi18]

I have a small flock of 6. 1 Orpington, 1 olive Egger, 3 cochin bantams and a d'uccle.All very sweet girls and 2 of the Cochin bantams are sort of newbies themselves. One of my bantams has gone broody so I'm going to remove her and put her in a broody buster for 3 days. Here's my question. I've been wanting a blue egg layer and have been offered a Ameraucana Bantam from a reputable breeder. I am thinking of trying to introduce her at the same time I return the broody bantam hoping it will help with the transition since she won't be the lone newbie. Any thoughts??????

 

[GertrudeLover01]

First things first, you need to quarantine that Ameraucana for at least a week at the bare minimum, preferably two or up to four. This is to prevent any diseases that the chicken has (or is a carrier for) from spreading through your flock. Then, you can start integration. I don't think the broody hen returning will help a whole lot with the integration, because the broody will be an established member of the flock and thus accepted far more readily. Also, by the time quarantine is over, the broody should either be sitting on eggs or not broody anymore, so that's another reason it won't help much.