So this is my first time letting a broody hen hatch her own eggs! Someone told me to move them to a safe location to keep the babies away from other hens and the rooster instead of waiting until they hatch. I built a big brooder for the hens and her eggs. When I grabbed the nest, I tried very carefully to carry them slowly. For some reason one rolled off, followed my 5 others!! I’m so upset, one cracked completely. They are young embryos but I feel terrible. The other 5 did not crack, they were just dropped. Do they still have a chance?? There are 5 other eggs along with the 5 I dropped she’s sitting on. It’s breaking my heart thinking I just killed 5 of her babies. I just want to know if they have a chance at living. They fell onto the dirt. Thank you!
Dropped Eggs!!!
- Thread starter Pcaines
- Start date
I am so sorry this happened.
I hope the others will make it.
I hope the others will make it.
- Thread starter
- #3
I feel terrible! Once one rolled, they all rolled. I couldn’t stop them without dropping the others. I thought I had a really good hold on them all.
What breed is the hen?
- Thread starter
- #5
She is a buff and the rooster is an Easter egger I incubated this spring. I don’t think they are all her eggs though, we have an assortment of hens.
Is she done laying her own eggs? How long has she been collecting eggs to hatch?
- Thread starter
- #7
She’s been sitting on them for at least 2 weeks. We thought she was just having trouble laying so we cleaned her cloaca to make sure there was no caked poop but apparently she’d been sitting on them all that time. So we predict more than 2 weeks. The one I dropped didn’t look ready to hatch in a week though we so I am not sure. But yes, she is done collecting.
When I let a broody hatch, I do put her in her own area within the coop. I let mother nature surprise me, sometimes not all the eggs hatch or momma hen walks away before the eggs are all hatched. Some people purchase an incubator in case momma walks away from the nest with a couple day left before they all hatch or if some eggs are still alive but momma is done sitting.
Nigel27
Crowing
It’s really helpful to mark the eggs if they’re not separated from the flock so they don’t collect more later on. Hens don’t do staggered hatches, so if she started sitting two weeks ago and accumulated eggs in that time you’ll have to keep an eye and put the left over eggs in an incubator when she abandons them.
meepANDpeep
Songster
- Mar 6, 2021
- 314
- 733
- 176
Did they hatch?
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