Help! First time hatching, missing eggs!

[LolaBlue]

Our SLW "Lola" has gone broody for the very first time. She is approx 2 years old and we've had her since POL.
After having her sit on infertile eggs for 4 or 5 days, I placed a dozen fertilised eggs under her last week.
Today should be Day 6.
I have left her alone up until today.
I just went out to check she had enough water and noticed egg shell in her nest.
I also found shell on the ground outside her nest from another egg (this one was an Araucana, egg which was infertile).
I then moved her so I could see what was happening under there and found her sitting on only 7 of the original eggs and 3 Araucana eggs.
Am I right in assuming she's eating them?
Why would she do that?
What can I do to prevent her doing that to more?
Could it be that when the Araucana is getting in there to lay, her fertile eggs are being broken?
Help!

 

[sourland]

I would guess that the hens are fighting when the araucana comes to lay in the nest. This frequently happens when broody hens share a common nest or a broody is not secured away from the rest of the flock. Try to fix things so that she has total privacy.

 

[LolaBlue]

If I move her now, what is the likelihood of her abandoning the remaining eggs? Is it as simple as moving her and the eggs to a pet carrier or the like on the ground of the coop?

 

[sourland]

If at all possible, I would try leaving her where she is and exclude all other hens from her nest. I have always had mixed success when moving broody hens.

 

[Busybee1]

I think you can move her. I moved my first broody trying to get things sorted out right. She got kicked off the nest and kept getting back on the wrong eggs. I finally put her in a pet carrier. The eggs did not hatch because they got cold, but I gave her some 3 day old chicks and all went well. We even had to move momma and babies a couple times. Quite the learning curve! Good luck!