Will a broody hen raise already hatched chicks?

[schambo]

I’m not an expert, but I think I have a hen that is contemplating going broody. She’s been going through a soft molt all summer and hasn’t laid since May, but she’s hanging out in the nest box for a few hours each day, fussing with the fake egg that’s in there, and tossing straw over her back. I don’t want to let her hatch eggs because I can’t have roosters, but if I slipped a few day-old sexlinks under her, would she raise them?

 

[NatJ]

I don’t want to let her hatch eggs because I can’t have roosters, but if I slipped a few day-old sexlinks under her, would she raise them?

Maybe.

If you want her to adopt chicks, first she needs to go all the way broody, and sit on eggs for about 3 weeks. The eggs do not have to be fertile. They don't even have to be real eggs-- fake eggs or golf balls typically work fine. But the time spent sitting is very important for making her ready to accept chicks.

If you plan to order chicks and have them shipped to you, pick a shipping date between 2.5 weeks and 4 weeks from when she started sitting. Or go to a local store at about the right time and buy the chicks there.

After she's been sitting for about 3 weeks, then you can buy chicks and try slipping them under her. Some people do it in the daytime so they can see how the hen reacts. I seem to have better luck if I keep the chicks in a brooder until evening (with food, water, and appropriate heat), then slip them under then hen after dark. That way the chicks snuggle under the hen and "talk" with her all night long (peeping chicks, clucking hen.) By morning, they are somewhat acquainted with each other.

The hen will often stay on the nest through that first day, but the chicks will pop out to eat & drink. Make sure there is food and water close to the hen. By the second day or so, the hen is ready to take the chicks off the nest and go for a walk.

I like to keep them in a fairly small area for the first few days ("small" ranging from 3x3 feet to 4x6 feet), so the chicks get used to being with the hen and following her around. If the hen is free to range across a large area immediately, chicks sometimes get left behind.

It is pretty common for a hen to accept the chicks and be a good mother, but it's not 100% certain. Some hens accept chicks easily, some are harder, and some just flat refuse (reject the chicks or kill them.) If they do accept the chicks, some hens are better mothers than others. You can't tell in advance which way your hen will be.