2 last eggs are quitters :o( w/ a Q

[Mandalina]

I had the 3rd chick hatch this am after pipping late last night (mover and a shaker!) and decided to candle the last 2 eggs while cleaning out my broody's cage this am.
One of the eggs no longer had an air pocket in it, and I though that maybe the chick was on it's way outsince that is what the chick who hatched this am's egg looked like last night. The other one still had a rather large air pocket that hadnt changed since day 19.

Well I got curious as to what was going on and my broody was off the nest eating french toast (yes, she is that spoiled lol) so I candled them again using a better light really quickly and noticed there was liquid on my larger egg's air pocket and the other egg had a chunk floating in it and what I hadnt seen earlier in the am is that there was a little air and it was moving around near the small end of the egg.


I cracked them open and my larger BR egg quit on day 18 or 19, chick looked small but perfectly formed and it stunk something bad.
My turken egg had a chick that was decomposing and it looked deformed.

I am pretty sad...and my poor hen is really ticked to not have eggs in her nest.


Would a broody stay broody for another 3 weeks? I would love to attempt hatching out some of my silkies eggs and my hen has done a good job sitting and protecting them.My DH isnt so sure about doing this again but if I wait to get a 'bator then there is the chance of having to wait on silkie eggs again since she goes broody every 3 weeks.
Should I just wait a few months and try again with a diff broody or buy a bator with next pay check....or should I just play with my current chicks and try to wean off hatching?

What would a BYC'er do?

 

[Mandalina]

bumping and adding:

this broody was the second hen to sit on this last batch of eggs, she only went broody a little over a week ago and started sitting on eggs last tuesday.my other hen up and ran off on the eggs after getting freaked out.

I gave her 2 eggs....she scooped them up and is sitting on them happy as could be.Havent told Dh that yet though LOL

 

[Sequin]

I am pretty sure that asking a BYCer what they would do, will yield all sorts of enabling thoughts and encouragement. My broody hen sat longer than just 3 weeks, so I am thinking your broody might be ok to work at hatching out a new clutch of eggs if she has only been sitting for about a week. Good Luck!!

 

[Chickaholic]

I am new at this too, Iv'e got 18 eggs going at the moment and there are several that I am worried about so all I can say is do what you feel is right. I have an incubator and I wish I had a broody hen instead. The incubator can be a frustrating thing!! Broody hens already know what to do. Try it out on the broody, hatching chicks out is so much fun in and of itself I would just go with what you have for now, but if you get a bator definitely get an egg turner, that thing saves so much time and energy!! Good luck!!

 

[Mandalina]

well I went with my BYC'er gut and she is happily sitting on 6 eggs LOL!