Broody Hen Sitting on eggs and laying eggs

[ibrahimzuberi]

Hi every one,

I am new to this forum, I have a strange concern that I try to search over internet but didn't get satisfactory answers so I put it here for you guys to share your expert opinion.

I have a broody hen which I bought a few months back, she started laying eggs in a nest, initially I collect eggs from her nest but after a few months I leave her eggs in her nest and put few more of her eggs in her nest so that she can become broody and incubate her eggs.

Finally after laying few eggs she become broody and she is sitting on 10 eggs. after a few day I found a broken egg in the cage where she was alone. the egg was layed away from her nest but in the confined cage and it was all eaten, I was surprised and through it away, but after three days I seen another egg broken and eaten, I lost the count of days but I think she is somewhere 17-18 days but today i see another egg and same treatment was performed with said egg.

My question is how a broody near 20th day still laying a egg occasionally? and second why she start eating her own eggs, although the eggs in the nest are still intact. I put ample food and water so that whenever she likes to eat she can.

Please guide me what is this all about.

 

[1cock2hens]

have you recounted the eggs she is sitting on? are you sure she just isnt rolling the unwanted eggs out of her nest and then attempting to dispose of them?

 

[ibrahimzuberi]

the nest is on some height and its not possible for hen to take her eggs out of nest because there is boarder which is preventing eggs and the overall cage is big so when she gets up for a meal she lay egg on the other side of the cage and then eat it.

I thought she was trying to take this egg back to nest which is not possible and accidentally she broke it and then she eat it, now whenever she lay an egg she is getting into the habit of eating it which is worrying me.

 

[1cock2hens]

so you have recounted the eggs she is sitting on or not?

 

[ibrahimzuberi]

yes i recounted the eggs and she is sitting on it

 

[Cryss]

 

[RWise]

If the egg she drops has a thin shell and brakes (or just brakes) she will clean up the mess to prevent predators from coming after it.
BTW there are pictures of hens carrying eggs, and threads here with info! I have never seen it,,,
I have had a hen lay an egg every day the whole time she was broody and setting on the nest. I stopped her after 2 weeks and got rid of the eggs which were 2 and 3 layers deep with broken eggs as well. I never let her try again, she was a RIR/PR.