Worried Animal Lover
In the Brooder
- Nov 29, 2019
- 9
- 10
- 34
I'm worried for some unborn chicks.
A hen from our neighbors free roam chickens had moved into my grandma's shed, our neighbor takes care of the chickens but I'm not sure he wants them. Either way we decided she could stay, she sat on them for roughly 19 days (from I could tell by checking them with a light) my grandma had only fully realized why she was going in the shed a few days ago and we were about to get her warm and safe because there are weasles and it's cold outside but when she went out there to start getting the hen set up the hay we had given to her was all over, her food dish was flipped, and feathers were everywhere, the hen was nowhere to be found and the eggs you could see were cracked and yolk was covering the shells. My grandma had thought all the eggs were taken but I refused to believe and went out to the shed right after I was told the story, sure enough it was a mess, I dug through the hay and found 2 cracked eggs, digging further I found 6 surviving eggs.
I quickly picked them up and got them inside because they were freezing (it was 35° f outside) we didn't know how long they had went without a heat source. I checked to see if they all had chicks in them and they did. We have them in a box full of hay and a towel, they are sitting on a heating pad that's currently keeping them at 98° f and are wrapped up in a birdnest shape, they are also covered by the towel.
I tried the floating egg test but I just can't tell, I've gently tapped the eggs and held them up to my ear but have gotten no responce. I'm worried they're dead but have made excuses to myself. I don't know what else to do for the eggs and it hurts my heart to think that hen had dedicated so much time to keep her babies warm only to have lost them all and maybe even her life just a few days before they should have hatched.
Do you think these eggs have a chance? How long should I hold onto them before giving up?
A hen from our neighbors free roam chickens had moved into my grandma's shed, our neighbor takes care of the chickens but I'm not sure he wants them. Either way we decided she could stay, she sat on them for roughly 19 days (from I could tell by checking them with a light) my grandma had only fully realized why she was going in the shed a few days ago and we were about to get her warm and safe because there are weasles and it's cold outside but when she went out there to start getting the hen set up the hay we had given to her was all over, her food dish was flipped, and feathers were everywhere, the hen was nowhere to be found and the eggs you could see were cracked and yolk was covering the shells. My grandma had thought all the eggs were taken but I refused to believe and went out to the shed right after I was told the story, sure enough it was a mess, I dug through the hay and found 2 cracked eggs, digging further I found 6 surviving eggs.
I quickly picked them up and got them inside because they were freezing (it was 35° f outside) we didn't know how long they had went without a heat source. I checked to see if they all had chicks in them and they did. We have them in a box full of hay and a towel, they are sitting on a heating pad that's currently keeping them at 98° f and are wrapped up in a birdnest shape, they are also covered by the towel.
I tried the floating egg test but I just can't tell, I've gently tapped the eggs and held them up to my ear but have gotten no responce. I'm worried they're dead but have made excuses to myself. I don't know what else to do for the eggs and it hurts my heart to think that hen had dedicated so much time to keep her babies warm only to have lost them all and maybe even her life just a few days before they should have hatched.
Do you think these eggs have a chance? How long should I hold onto them before giving up?
