When can I put first time mama with hatchlings back into the flock?

[Chick-N-Fun]

I have a first time mother sitting on 5 eggs. Hatch date is June 1st. A couple days before the eggs are scheduled to hatch, I plan on blocking mom and her five babies in the coop from the rest of the flock. How long do I need to wait before integrating mom and her hatchlings back into the flock?
I have always incubated or bought chicks and have always waited for the chicks to be 12 weeks old before integrating them with my adult flock. With a mom this time, do I need to wait that long?

 

[ChickenGirl555]

Definitely not 12 weeks. Make sure the others can see Momma through your wall so she doesn't have to reintegrate when they are put back together. Usually, mothers choose the right times to do these things, but how protective is your broody?

 

[lazy gardener]

If you have a nice big coop and run with more than the recommended 4/10 s.f./bird, and plenty of hiding places, and can create safe zones for the chicks, I'd plan to do so within the first 2 weeks. Preferably during week #2. Broody hormones are strongest during the first 2 weeks, so her drive to attack any one who messes with her babies will be strongest. I like to do all integrations when the birds are actually out on free range. Do you have that option for supervised free range?

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

@ChickenGirl555 At this point, mama hisses and growls and puffs up like a blow fish when I check on her. She hasn’t tried to bite me yet she gets off the nest only a couple of times a day to eat, drink poop and stretch. She immediately runs back to her best when the coast is clear.

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

@lazy gardener I do not have an option to free range since my husband has 2 bird dogs!!! I currently have Two 4x6 coops connect together with Two roofed 10x10 dog runs. My husband has built a multilevel playground for each run with lots of roosts and places to hide. I currently have 11 hens....and the 5 eggs ready to hatch!

 

[ChickenGirl555]

What is it like, raising with a broody? I want to try hatching eggs next year if one of my buff orps goes broody.

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

@ChickenGirl555 it’s been easy so far. My Black Copper Maran broody is doing all the work!!! Lol. I do collect any extra eggs that appear in the nesting box.... The most difficult part of the process has been for several of the OTHER hens. Liberty (my broody) is sitting on her eggs in the favorite nesting box! The other girls either wait for her to get up to eat and then lay their eggs on the fertile eggs or have had to learn to lay in the other available nesting boxes!!!
I plan on candling the eggs this weekend to check on progress.

 

[chickens really]

Hello...
I hatch out my Chicks in my Garage Brooder with Momma..
When they are 5 days old I free range the flock and slip Momma and Chicks back into my Coop..I set up a straw bed and Chick feed and water close to the spot she will use on the floor of my Coop.
The other Birds do not mess with her. My Rooster sometimes chases her for being gone so long although it's never serious...They just figure she came home with Chicks...You need a nice sized Coop though and the ability to free range daily..

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

Hello...
I hatch out my Chicks in my Garage Brooder with Momma..
When they are 5 days old I free range the flock and slip Momma and Chicks back into my Coop..I set up a straw bed and Chick feed and water close to the spot she will use on the floor of my Coop.
The other Birds do not mess with her. My Rooster sometimes chases her for being gone so long although it's never serious...They just figure she came home with Chicks...You need a nice sized Coop though and the ability to free range daily..

When do you move Momma and her eggs in the brooder? (What day of incubation?) I like this idea. I have a 6' 3' brooder with a screened cover that I would love to use for her and her eggs. I bought a kitty litter pan that I plan to fill with straw for her eggs. I will move Liberty to the brooder at night and place her on her new nest....just how close to the hatch day I should move her? I am nervous about interrupting her broodiness! Will she reject the eggs??

 

[ChickenGirl555]

When do you move Momma and her eggs in the brooder? (What day of incubation?) I like this idea. I have a 6' 3' brooder with a screened cover that I would love to use for her and her eggs. I bought a kitty litter pan that I plan to fill with straw for her eggs. I will move Liberty to the brooder at night and place her on her new nest....just how close to the hatch day I should move her? I am nervous about interrupting her broodiness! Will she reject the eggs??

I can't answer all of this but when you do move her, do it at night with minimal help from a flashlight.