Regular chicks hatched by a bantam!

[Costa Rica Art]

We only have 7 laying hens but I wanted to raise my own replacements but I don't want to do the brooder routine for just a couple of chicks. I thought that being our little bantam hen is so good about hatching and raising her young that when she went broody we replaced some of her eggs with 3 eggs from my friend's flock that has a good rooster with his hens. Well it worked, Henrietta hatched 3 chicks and is raising them as if they were her chicks. They are larger than her 3 but that doesn't seem to matter to her. They are now 3 weeks old and it looks like we now have our own rooster. Something I would have never figured was we had 3 turkey hens nesting of which one of the hens was sitting on blanks, after we tossed the bad eggs she stole not only turkey eggs but regular eggs, bantam eggs and silkie eggs. Not only that, she has taken over one of the small size nest boxes in which the bantam and silkie hen lay their eggs. Well, now I know we can raise our own egg hen replacements, we will have a lot of chickens as the ol' gals will just retire and lounge around till they go to the last roost of forever.

 

[kuntrygirl]

My 4 bantams hatch about 90% of my chickens. They are the best broody hens and mothers.

 

[Costa Rica Art]

Thanks, kuntrygirl, for you comments. The little bantam hen is now smaller than the chicks following momma, it is a big grin (but very practical). The white silkie hen, Mrs. PJ, is now setting, she will be another experiment. When her first egg hatches I will sneak in at night and put maybe 4 or 5 day old meat chicks under her and see if she will raise them. She has always been a good momma and doesn't get upset when I check her eggs and give her a little feed while she is setting. I think fussing with her will help her accept the day old chicks. I can get day old chicks every day so we will see how adoption works with her. Sad to say that our turkeys have been taken away, they were just too much for our small yard, with as many eggs one of the hen laid we would be over run with half grown turkeys so a good friend now gives us milk for the turkeys they got, a good exchange.

 

[Mrs. Fluffy Puffy]

My bantams hatch out Guineas, Bantam or Standard chickens..heck they even try and hatch out rocks!

~Aspen

 

[GermanChick]

My Cochin Bantam just hatched out her first batch of regular size chicks. It's hard to have those little banies NOT be broody ;-)

 

[jtbrown]

We have 3 OEGB and one Mille fleur d'uccle and a golden sebright Pullet, do the go broody often?

 

[chicken grandma]

Quote:
My d'uccle hen started to go broody at 2 years old and she has been broody several times a year since then.

 

[jtbrown]

Thanks for info, the d'uccle is sweet but a little timid, I think she would make a great mom. I will keep fingers crossed. The idea of babies without brooders is certainly awesome, thanks for the post!

 

[peepblessed]

Our old leghorn hen tried to hatch out a pile of old medicine bottles.

 

[cmom]

I have golf balls in my nest boxes and the broodies put the golf balls in with the eggs. I don't know how they do it but I have found golf balls from other nest boxes in with their eggs.