Adding Chicks to Broody Hens

Have you ever been in a public place full of darling cute chubby babies?  Don't you just love them, their big eyes, rosy cheeks and toothless grins!  

When they start fussing and screaming aren't you glad they belong to someone else?  Yet when it comes to your own children they can do no wrong! 

Hens are the same way.  If they have not bonded with their eggs...adding a chick from the feed store just isn't going to happen.  The longer they sit the more willing they are to take on foster babies. 

 

My process for adding day old chicks to a broody hen is pretty simple.  I have tried and true hens that are good mamas. It takes time to find the right hen.  It just takes practice.  I have never had a hen not take a chick.  

1. You need to let your broody sit for at LEAST 10 days, I try and let them go to full term.  This gives them time to bond with the eggs, they become hers!  Let her sit on the same number of eggs as you plan on putting chicks under her.  

1. Once you get the chick home, no matter what time of day, put the box near the broody so that she can hear their peeping.  Remember to keep them warm.  I let mine peep for about 30 minutes.

2.  Take an egg out and put a chick under her.  See how she reacts.  Does she coo or does she peck the baby on the head?  If she coos you are good to go, if she has another reaction that is not motherly, take the chick back and try again in an hour. I try and add the chicks from the back of the hen, but that is not always possible.  

3.  If she takes the first chick you can repeat the process every 10 or 15 minutes until you have added all the chicks and removed most of the eggs.   I leave an egg or 2 until the next day, just so she thinks she is not done yet.  

If the hen does not accept the first chick after an hour of listening to the peeping, you may have to wait until night.  So have the brooder ready because your chicks with need heat and nourishment.  You still need to do a few at a time. But when it is dark and everyone is quiet, she might not know what you have done! 

I would keep it dark until morning and are able to be there and see how she is going to react. They should be fine. 

If you give you hen time to bond with her eggs and to listen to the peeping,  you should not have any trouble adding live chicks to a broody hen!