New mama has lost her babies

[dbdowst]

I have 7 hens. One was broody so we decided to add to our brood and we got 3 fertilized eggs. The broody hen sat on the eggs and hatched them and was raising the babies until something got the babies and killed all 3. Now we are wondering if we should try to get more babies about the same age or start over with fertilized eggs again? We will ensure the safety of the babies for sure.

 

[sumi]

You can try, but if she knows her babies got killed and saw them get killed she may not be interested in adopting others. If you decide to go ahead and get her replacement chicks let her see and hear the chicks and see how she responds. If she shows interest put the chick down near her, but be ready to snatch it if she shows signs of aggression. Be prepared to raise them yourself if she rejects them. Otherwise wait until she's sleeping and slip them under her. In the morning check and see how she reacts to them. Again, be prepared for aggression. Hens know which chicks are theirs and some may adopt others, but some won't.

 

[dainerra]

How long has it been since she lost her chicks? If it was an extremely short period of time, she might accept them. Is she looking for her lost babies? If so, slipping them under her at night might work.
If you just put the babies down next to her while she is up and around, she is likely going to attack them. Hens are programmed that they will often kill another bird's chicks to insure survival/food supply for their own. Plus, baby chicks are high in protein and adult birds won't hesitate to eat them.

 

[dbdowst]

Thank you, this just happened last night...it sounds like if we do anything we should get the fertilized eggs. She has been out in the run and all around the yard today. This is something she has not done in a while, since the broody behavior kicked in. She is eating and drinking, but does not want much contact from me, which is unusual because all of my hens love affection. She also has not spent any time today in the hatching box where she was sleeping with the babies.

 

[dainerra]

do you have an incubator? Unless you have another hen that is broody, this hen likely won't be broody again for quite some time. Though some hens will just nest over and over again all year lol