Mother hen wants back with the big girls..

Hi all,

It seems that my broody has now decided that it is time to rejoin her siblings in the big run and roost, despite that her chick is only 8 weeks old.  She is pacing the outdoor run to join the girls, and wanted out of the brooding nest at bed time. Little one is fully feathered, apart from her head, and ofc goes where mummy goes.

Is it too early for little one to join the others? She is a lone hatch therefore I don't want to cause her stress by leaving her in the nest alone.  The big girls have seen baby daily for the past 3 weeks or so, one of them recently trying to peck her through the fence. Shall I wait a few weeks more? put mum back? put both out to integrate?

Many thanks in advance

It's the right time - when mum wants to go back in she's ready to introduce her chick to everyone else and will defend her chick from the others when she gets in there. Be aware that she has been out of the pecking order for a number of months so expect squabbles, but don't separate the hen from her chick. Chickens are sociable and will always require company. Do it at night time when they are in roosting so they all wake up together and at a time when you can spend a couple of hours just keeping an eye on things. Put lots of treats out to distract them, that way hopefully it shouldn't be too bad.

Many thanks for this advice I shall let them run for a while together tomorrow keeping an eye on them for the duration, and help them all settle for the evening fingers crossed!

Have to admit apart from the odd peck here and there, I have not had any problems with integrating chicks. Originally we incubated pure bred eggs and they went into a nursery for a couple of weeks, then as it's so warm here a small ark with the door open chick size and they do it all themselves, deciding on their own when they wanted to go into the big wide world and later into chook's night quarters when they start to roost. Now we have a couple of hens who go broody and she sits and raises her chicks with the rest, with a bolt hole for feed and safety and to go in at night, in the corner of the house. There are loads of perches at all levels

I realise we are lucky to have quite a bit of space and are here all day, but basically we don't have any damage (apart from the occasional squabble) with the other twenty odd chooks and cockerels, if we lose any it's cats and occasionally snakes we suspect.

She has been a good Mum most chooks want away by about 6 weeks 

Did it go well with reintroducing the hen and chick. I still have the hen and the chick separated from the flock at 8 weeks old. I need to decide when to put them in as I going on holiday next weekend for a week.