Will a broody hen foster ducklings?

[Kaitie09]

We have a broody hen, and we have 2 ducklings that are a little over a week old. The ducklings will be moving outside this weekend to a new brooder and I was wondering if maybe we could put the broody hen in with them and see if she would foster the ducks.

 

[JLS]

It may work. It all depends on the broody and on how long she has been setting. You will need to put the ducklings under her after she has gone to sleep at night. Then you must watch closely the next morning to see how she reacts.

One word of advice: My broody had a fit when I moved her and the "eggs" to a new location. I was advised by BYCer's to move her after dark. When I followed their advice my broody accepted the new location. She didn't abandon the nest. So I would set the broody up in the new location before you put the ducklings under her.

Maybe someone on BYC has done it themselves and can advise you better. I'll be subscribing to this thread so I can learn too.

 

[Kaitie09]

We noticed that she has been sitting for about a week or two weeks. This is her first time and she gets up and goes out a lot. She also does not mind much when I lift her up to get the eggs, just a little talking. There are no eggs in the nesting boxes right now, and when we block off her favorite one, she just goes and sits in another. She tried to get in the old one for a while, then just gave up and moved on to the next, so I don't think it is going to be a major problem to move her.

 

[hirschykiss]

I did this with my first broody,a silkie, a couple of weeks ago and she accepted them just fine! I set them in a box close enough for her to hear them for about an hr then put them under her during the day. At first I was afraid 1 of the ducks wouldn't accept her but it came around within an hr. She had been sitting for about 3 weeks. Good luck!

 

[Matt A NC]

The hen may accept them, but at a weed old I doupt that the ducklings will accept a mother.

Matt

 

[wbruder17]

What kind of chicken is it? My silkie accepted eggs and chicks that were not her own, but would not accept new chicks a week after hers were" born". Its a toss up, but if you are woried about the babies being ducks, that would not matter. A silkie in New Zeaoand a few weeks ago adopted some baby rabbits to raise, so I don't think WHAT the babies are matters so much.

 

[Kaitie09]

She is just a mix that we have. Her mother looks exactly like a Delaware, but is not. The father was either an pure Ameraucana, or an Ameraucana/RIR mix. The ducklings are Mallards from TSC. Even if they do not fully accept her, will she still accept them? And if she does, how much will it bother her that her babies don't run under to her?