Returning hen and chick back into the coop

[Markd7781]

Hi all hope someone can help,

I am very new to keeping chickens so apologies for the long message.

I have a very broody gold top and after two weeks of constantly having to take he out of the nest box I was advised to put a couple of day old chicks under her. I did this but unfortunately one died because she was vcery protective and wouldnt allow them to come out of the coop to feed. I trsnsferred the hen and the chick to my summer house and they are both thriving. The chick is now two weeks old.
The hen has suddenly become more mobile and in tbe last couple of days she has been wanting to come out. Today I let her and the chick out and straight away she wanted to be in the pen with my other hens.

At what age can I let the hen and her chick back in with the other hens.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Many thanks

 

[OrpieLover31]

You should a while before you let the chick even go near the other hens. The hens will most likely peck the chick to death. You should wait when the chick is probably 3 or 4 months old or when the broody hen starts to ignore the chick. But wait until the chick is much older and fully feathered! Hope my advice helped you.

 

[OrpieLover31]

I type way to fast !!!! I meant you should wait a while......

 

[Markd7781]

Thats great thanks very much.

My other gold top is sat on a clutch of three eggs which are due to hatch in two weeks or so. Once the eggs have hatched should I remove her and the chicks from the rest of the flock or will she be ok raising them with the other hens present.

Thanks again

Mark

 

[Scottyhorse]

What we do when we have chicks with no mom, is after they are mostly done brooding, we corner off a section of the coop and put the chicks in there with a heat lamp for the night. That way the can see the other chickens and the other chickens can see them, and when we let them out, there is usually no fighting at all. We also do that with our hens a lot when the have their chicks. You should try that! Hope all goes well!!!