Hen died while sitting

[tinychickfarm]

I had a hen that died last night while sitting on 8 eggs... 1 had hatched but also died, not sure if it was because the hen was cold and the chick died from that or I discovered my hen had a ton of mites on her and it is possible that that was the case of death and could my chick have dies from that? My question is, could the unhatched eggs still be good or not? Also, can I put the unhatched eggs under another hen that is sitting?

RIP curly

 

[Aphrael]

So sorry for your loss.

It is possible that the eggs could still be viable. However, I would check on the health of your other broody as well as all your other birds. If they have mites, that is something you want to deal with ASAP. Good luck.

 

[Eggcessive]

Mite infestation will surely kill a chicken, especially one who is brooding and not dust bathing. Permethrin garden dust and sevin dust will kill mites if used every 7 days until they are gone. The coop and nest boxes must be emptied of litter, and the floor, nests, walls and roosts should then be sprayed or treated with Permectrin II or permethrin 10%. Mites are extremely hard to get rid of permanently, so a check often should be done. You can candle your eggs, while still incubating them to see if they are still alive. Here are several good links on mites:
http://www.backyardpoultrymag.com/laura_e_john/
http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu/pdf/8162.pdf
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/08/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification.html

 

[darkbluespace]

So sorry about your hen and chicks! I have had a couple of broody hens get mites and now I put diatomaceous earth (DE) in the nest box and in the straw they sit on. If mites appear then I take out all nest material and burn it and replace it with more lightly DE covered straw. I make sure broody can dust bathe in wood ashes or DE in the dirt. This has kept them well under control. It is another reason I keep broody hens away from the regular nest boxes. I hope more of your eggs hatch!