What does your set-up look like? is the broody isolated so no other hen can get to her nest? How much room to come off of the nest to poop does she have?
A broody should come off the nest at least once a day to eat, drink, and poop. I've seen some come off for only 15 minutes at a time once a day. I had one that came off twice a day for over an hour each time. I have many that I never see off the nest, but I know she is coming off because she doesn't poop in the nest. A broody hen should instinctively know to not poop in her nest. Occasionally you get a hen where the instinct just isn't good but are you doing something that messes up her instincts? Knowing about your set-up might help us help you, but it sounds to me that the hen just does not have good broody instincts.
Broody hens walk on the eggs when getting on and off the nest. So do hens that are just laying eggs. Broody hens also turn the eggs. I had an egg break under a broody once. When I looked at the shell, it was really thin. I think it broke because it was thin, not because of anything wrong the broody hen or any other chicken did.
When it broke the nest became a mess, the other eggs were a mess, and the hen's underside was a mess. I cleaned things up as well as I could but nothing hatched. That broken egg allows bacteria to grow which kills the other eggs.
Did you wash the eggs before you set them, especially the refrigerated eggs? That washes off the bloom which can allow bacteria to enter the egg. That could explain the red circles and dead chicks in the eggs. Did it stink with a rotten egg smell? It could have been an egg with bacteria inside exploded. Usually an infected egg seeps a rotten fluid but the pressure can build up inside one and cause it to explode.
You can try washing the hen's belly, totally cleaning out the nest, and washing the eggs and see what happens, but it did not work for me. Maybe you'll be luckier, especially if those three eggs are pretty close to hatching. You can try cleaning the hen and nest and giving her fresh eggs. That could work. You can get day old chicks and put them under her, see if she will adopt them. Or you can break her from being broody and wait to try again later.
I agree with Bobbi. I let mine hatch with the flock, so I mark the eggs and check under her daily for any fresh eggs. Other than that I leave my broody hens alone. I do less harm that way.
A broody should come off the nest at least once a day to eat, drink, and poop. I've seen some come off for only 15 minutes at a time once a day. I had one that came off twice a day for over an hour each time. I have many that I never see off the nest, but I know she is coming off because she doesn't poop in the nest. A broody hen should instinctively know to not poop in her nest. Occasionally you get a hen where the instinct just isn't good but are you doing something that messes up her instincts? Knowing about your set-up might help us help you, but it sounds to me that the hen just does not have good broody instincts.
Broody hens walk on the eggs when getting on and off the nest. So do hens that are just laying eggs. Broody hens also turn the eggs. I had an egg break under a broody once. When I looked at the shell, it was really thin. I think it broke because it was thin, not because of anything wrong the broody hen or any other chicken did.
When it broke the nest became a mess, the other eggs were a mess, and the hen's underside was a mess. I cleaned things up as well as I could but nothing hatched. That broken egg allows bacteria to grow which kills the other eggs.
Did you wash the eggs before you set them, especially the refrigerated eggs? That washes off the bloom which can allow bacteria to enter the egg. That could explain the red circles and dead chicks in the eggs. Did it stink with a rotten egg smell? It could have been an egg with bacteria inside exploded. Usually an infected egg seeps a rotten fluid but the pressure can build up inside one and cause it to explode.
You can try washing the hen's belly, totally cleaning out the nest, and washing the eggs and see what happens, but it did not work for me. Maybe you'll be luckier, especially if those three eggs are pretty close to hatching. You can try cleaning the hen and nest and giving her fresh eggs. That could work. You can get day old chicks and put them under her, see if she will adopt them. Or you can break her from being broody and wait to try again later.
I agree with Bobbi. I let mine hatch with the flock, so I mark the eggs and check under her daily for any fresh eggs. Other than that I leave my broody hens alone. I do less harm that way.
