Chicken sitting on eggs

[alysadrake88]

Hello, I have a few questions. My chicken is sitting on her eggs and has been since Thanksgiving Day...so it would put that at 25 for the 1st laid egg...she has a total of 6 to 7 underneath her...Is it ok to just leave her alone and continue to let her to her thing, or do I need to remove the eggs? She doesn't give off of them at all, she used to give off of the eggs for a little while in the beginning and now she doesn't get up at all. This is the first set of eggs that one of our chickens has committed to sitting on, so I just want to make sure this is all ok, and if it isn't, what do I need to do or not do? Thanks for all the help

 

[DobieLover]

Hello, I have a few questions. My chicken is sitting on her eggs and has been since Thanksgiving Day...so it would put that at 25 for the 1st laid egg...she has a total of 6 to 7 underneath her...Is it ok to just leave her alone and continue to let her to her thing, or do I need to remove the eggs? She doesn't give off of them at all, she used to give off of the eggs for a little while in the beginning and now she doesn't get up at all. This is the first set of eggs that one of our chickens has committed to sitting on, so I just want to make sure this is all ok, and if it isn't, what do I need to do or not do? Thanks for all the help

Are they fertile?
Have you candled them?
Did you mark the eggs she was setting so you could remove eggs deposited in her nest at later times by other hens when she left the nest?
They should have started hatching by now.
A broody will typically leave the nest daily to poop, eat, drink, stretch and dust bathe. If she's not taking care of her basic needs, she's not going to be able to raise chicks.

 

[alysadrake88]

Are they fertile?
Have you candled them?
Did you mark the eggs she was setting so you could remove eggs deposited in her nest at later times by other hens when she left the nest?
They should have started hatching by now.
A broody will typically leave the nest daily to poop, eat, drink, stretch and dust bathe. If she's not taking care of her basic needs, she's not going to be able to raise chicks.

Yes they are fertile, I candled them about a week ago and everything look like normal. She doesn't allow us to go anywhere near her eggs, as soon as we walk into the coop where she is...she goes into defensive mode...she is very protective over herself and the eggs...I want to try and look at the eggs, but I am.not too sure how to get her to move or how to get the eggs from underneath her without getting attacked...LOL...any advice?

 

[DobieLover]

Yes they are fertile, I candled them about a week ago and everything look like normal. She doesn't allow us to go anywhere near her eggs, as soon as we walk into the coop where she is...she goes into defensive mode...she is very protective over herself and the eggs...I want to try and look at the eggs, but I am.not too sure how to get her to move or how to get the eggs from underneath her without getting attacked...LOL...any advice?

Do it after dark. Wear a head lamp, leather gloves and long sleeves.

 

[Ridgerunner]

My chicken is sitting on her eggs and has been since Thanksgiving Day...so it would put that at 25 for the 1st laid egg

I don't understand this. It does not matter when the egg was laid, what maters is when incubation started. I don't understand the timing as to how long have certain eggs been incubated. Were they all under her when she first started?

She doesn't give off of them at all,

I've seen a broody hen leave the nest twice a day for over an hour each time. I've seen a hen leave her nest once a day for 15 minutes. Often I don't see them off the nest at all but I know she is getting off the nest because she is not pooping in the nest. They can be pretty secretive when leaving the nest.

I want to try and look at the eggs

When I was a kid my job was to gather the eggs. If we had a broody hen I had to check under her daily since sometimes other hens will lay in the nest with the broody. we'd mark the eggs and remove any daily that did not belong. Most broody hens weren't that bad but occasionally one would be brutal. She'd peck and peck hard. But I was not going to tell my parents that I was afraid of a chicken. I checked.

That was in the summer so I was wearing short sleeves and did not have gloves. Long sleeves and gloves may help you if you check under her. You can either pick her up or just raise her up and look under her. After dark might be a good idea, had not thought of that.