Egg Problems With Broody Hen - What Went Wrong?

[TexasToucan]

Just had a broody Buff Orpington hen sit on 10 eggs. She was very diligent about staying on her nest, only coming out daily for a short visit to the food and water, but this being south Texas, no danger of the eggs getting chilled during such a short time. After 21 days, I start keeping an eye out for new chicks. Nothing. Finally, on day 22-23 I hear some chirps. Mom is still clamped down on the eggs, but I noticed a weak one laying on the side of the nest. It was weak and not viable, but I did try to put it under a heat lamp and try to dropper water on its beak. It died later. I got mom off the nest and the rest of the eggs showed no sign of hatching. There were two missing eggs that I don't know where they went. I broke open the eggs and they were in various stages of development.

Does any one have suggestions on what would cause all these eggs to stop developing? Would the hen not have been turning them often enough? I know she stayed on them the whole time. Could the missing eggs have been broken (then she ate them), contaminating the whole clutch? This is the second time, with a different hen, that this has happened this year. I have had several hatches by my Orpingtons, and they all went well in the past. Maybe I need to add some new genetics and get new girls? I don't have an incubator and rely on the hens to do the job for me, but it is getting old setting up the nursery coop for nothing.

 

[Lollipop]

Can't be sure what is causing this random poor hatch either, but if you decide to change the gene pool, the easiest way is just a new rooster, instead of all new hens. that is unless they are getting old. But if they are laying well, keep them. The list of possibilities that you mentioned, seems to cover all the bases. Could be something the hen is doing and it just escapes notice. Could this be the same hen that had a problem the last time? Just really hard to pin it down to a specific. Good luck with whatever you decide.........Pop

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

I think it could be a moisture issue..have had similar prob...the best hatch rate I had 13 out of 15 eggs was a hen that I took her nest (and broody) out of the woods under a briar bush. (Great spot just too many predators out there) I took the eggs, feathers leaves and scraped up the dirt too, and rebuilt it quickly in the coop. Moe wasn't really happy being stuffed in my jacket during that time but being on the side of a steep hill I needed both hands free! I keep her locked up for 3 days then she stayed in the coop.
I read somewhere that you should lay a patch of sod grass side down then put chips or straw on top of that. It would most closely resemble the nest on the ground they built in the wild. After the hatch when i cleaned out the box, the plywood underneath was indeed moist.
The others that didn't have that, only hatched half the eggs.
I will be lining the other nest boxes with sod, they just went broody so early this year, we still had snow on the ground.