Clutch won’t hatch w/ broody hen after 1 month!!

[HolaHenMama!]

Hi! I am new to chickens. We got a rooster after one of our hens and chicks got picked off by a hawk.
My hen is a brahma if that matters. She started collecting eggs about a month ago. Her clutch kept growing until I marked them. She has been a pretty tenacious egg sitter so I am not sure if the chicks are alive! No new eggs to her clutch for about 25 days.
I candled them and saw something black in all of them. About half the egg about a week ago.
I am not sure what to do! Help!!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Any movement in those eggs? Do they smell? Just because you have a rooster doesn't mean he will breed all the hens. If she has been setting 25 days, than the eggs are no good. Handle with care.

 

[HolaHenMama!]

I candled them and they are dark. Doesn’t it seem weird that all 7 wouldn’t hatch? They smell like a sweaty animal.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I candled them and they are dark. Doesn’t it seem weird that all 7 wouldn’t hatch? They smell like a sweaty animal.

Do you have an actual candler? I can usually turn my eggs and see the air cell if you candle the pointed end. If you are totally sure about the setting date than they are no good.

Sometimes things go wrong. Are you sure the eggs you collected were from a hen that was laying fertile eggs? Sometimes the eggs get bacteria in them if they are dirty, or if they are roughly handled, and sometimes a hen doesn't turn them properly. All kinds of factors that go wrong during the process.

If you are adventurous you can try cracking one open to see. Two options could happen. You discover a baby not fully developed, or the egg explodes. That's why knowing for sure when you set them is important. I discard anything after day 23 that didn't hatch.