Putting an incubator chick under a hen that's sitting???

[mamaclucker]

Hi, I had a broody hen and bought some fertilized eggs to put under her. At the last minute I decided to divide them up and put some under her, the rest in the incubator. There were a few issues along the way, and ended up with 4 in the incubator and 2 under the hen. Today (day 24) one finally hatched in the incubator. There may be another....the beak hole has popped through, but its been like that for 12 hours.
Then hen, who is still sitting, was moved to a clean, small coop a few days ago...very private, quiet, food, & water. Can I put the incubator chick (its 14 hrs old) under the hen...my late-husband did this years ago...but, the hen already had hatched a few chicks, when he slipped the "bator" babies under her. I was so thrilled this AM, that we had 1 to hatch...and hopefully 2...and have no idea why it took 24 days. (I was really consistent turning the eggs, keeping water in the bottom trays, etc).But, I just don't want to take a chance w this one baby...and have no idea how the hen will react. Yet, I think the baby is FAR better off with a Hen as its mom. Thanks for any advice.
Jill,
13 hens, 2 old dogs, 1 new English Shepherd puppy, and remarried to a city-boy-husband....in Ky

 

[ralleia]

1) What breed is the hen?
2) What color is the chick?

I've been very successful at slipping day-old chicks under hens that have been brooding about 3 weeks. With black australorp broodies, 100% successful. With the Brahma, she would only take dark-colored chicks and was rather savage to any light-colored ones (those went to the australorp!)

As long as the hen is a motherly type, then you have good odds of being able to plant a chick or two under her. Watch her after you do--if she accepts the chick, she'll fluff her feathers to warm the chick and cluck cluck cluck to try to call it over. If she doesn't, she'll peck at the chick when it tries to go to her.

 

[gritsar]

I slipped two incubator chicks under a broody, at the same time hers were hatching. She hatched two and got two from the incubator. Unfortunately one of the bator chicks had a neurological defect and we had to cull it. Then the day she brought her chicks off the nest for the first time, 3 days old, one of the chicks was injured when a meat bird attacked it. That chick spent two days in the house before it recovered and I took it out (at night) and slipped it back under mama again. She successfully raised that chick and the two she hatched under her.
The only issue I can see that you might run in to is that mama may abandon her eggs in order to take care of the chick you give her. I do agree that the chicks are better off with the broody though.