using broody hen?

[sydney13]

im getting chickens and wanted to start by buying a adult rhode island red and silkie and then whichever goes broody first to be a foster mom for hatchery chicks. if its just two chickens in the coop and then i give one chicks to raise should i separate the two adults? Is it best to leave the mom and her chicks in the coop and take out the other hen or to put the mother and chicks in a separate pen and leave the other hen in the coop? When age should the chick be when the go in the same house with their mom and other hen?

 

[Goose and Fig]

Hmmmm- it's really difficult to predict when a hen will go broody. There's no guarantee that your chicks will arrive at the exact right time, and the hen may end up killing them. You'll have to make sure that when she does go broody you can get them shipped a.s.a.p. It's best to give mom & chicks a place of their own.

If it works out- momma hen will abandon the chicks when she is ready. She'll go back to her old life and start laying again like she never even knew them.

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

I wouldn't guarantee that ANY hen will go broody. There are so many variables to take into consideration that it's almost impossible to guarantee anything.

 

[gmachicken]

We watched our hens a while before letting them even set on the eggs . Just to be certain they were ready. Then when the first egg hatched we got a couple of other types of chicks. Put them in at night and all has been mostly well ever since. Our chicks are 3, 2, and 1 weeks old. 3 hens 12 chicks. Fun.

 

[Kiwibird]

Broodies are more reliable when introduced to eggs than when introduced to chicks. It is best to have them in a cage with no other adult hens. There are lots of reasons for this, including:
- the other hen is likely to go broody if they are left together.
- the other hen may lay an egg and the broody may swap nests and sit on that egg instead of her own clutch (which then goes cold).
- the other hen may attack the chicks when they hatch.

However, if you do put chicks under a broody, all you need in case of the hen abandoning the chicks is a box and a light for a makeshift brooder. If you put eggs under a broody who proves unreliable, you need an incubator or a second broody to solve your problem.

I started out hatching and raising chicks under broodies, and it is great fun. I will continue to use broodies when I have them. However, I now also have an incubator so that if really cool eggs become available when a hen is not broody, I can hatch them.