no coyotes or foxes - she's in a caged run, but is nesting below the coop, where i think the skunk / rat can get into - the wire mesh is not small enough. i will move her to a dog cage wrapped in chicken wire, within the run when i can.
a rat - huh! - hadn't thought of that. Rat or skunk - I dont know which i'd rather? Well all eggs seemed in tact this morning - no shells and - no chicks this waiting game is hard - i'm sure its been longer than 21 days.
yes you see i really dont know if it had hatched or was raided. Either way there was no chick around so someone took it. i have tried to make the area more vermin proof tonight and I'll move her tomorrow if another goes down. I will probably have to move her anyway as the young chicks are...
i have a hen sitting on about 15 right now - this is nail biting stuff - ive never done this before - i keep going back to them - its almost as addictive as ebay!
Chicky Pillow is sitting on a number of eggs, but I'm pretty sure a racoon or skunk is picking them off. I found egg shell in the nesting area this morning. It was caved in at one end, the contents I assume had been eaten. As i cant make the area vermin proof, all i can think of is to move her...
Thank you all - these are really helpful replies - I saw the light part at the fat end as you suggested - so all's looking pretty good, there are a fair number in that condition when i candled a few this evening. I made a firmer fence than this morning - to deter the others and put a separate...
thank you that's what I'm hoping. Would a bad one smell through the egg shell? Today i have fenced off the nesting area so the other chickens are not able to lay there - I should have thought of this sooner!!
Chicky pillow is finally incubating a nest of eggs! she started with 10, but our other 2 hens keep depositing eggs near her and she takes them in - she has 18 now. I marked them all, but this is not fail safe - today i broke 3 good eggs for cooking- not a pretty sight - so i'm leaving her clutch...