How long to give her?

[Blondiega1]

It's been 3 weeks now since my pekin hen Delilah laid her first egg in her nest. She laid one, then it was almost a week before she laid there again. She's laid there everyday since.
One day this past week she removed one egg from the nest.
Last count I got this past Friday she had 11 eggs in the nest.
I can't get a count today as she's buried them with leaves so I know she's still going back to the nest every morning to lay or tend them.

She went broody last year and set for the full 35 days. We had 2 full formed ducklings out of 10 eggs but for whatever reason they did not survive hatch.

It has been 3 weeks since the first egg was laid and she's yet to go to nest full time.
How long do I wait before I need to pull those eggs out and discard them?

Is it unusually for them to lay and then not set for awhile?
At what point do I assume she's hoarding eggs but not going to set?

 

[Miss Lydia]

And no more sign of fox.
I stayed up practically all night watching for him, gun ready to go, and he had the nerve to not show up. LOL

Some how they just know. Don't let your guard down.

 

[Blondiega1]

She was on nest this morning.
Once she left I managed to get a count and only counted 5.
She had 11 now only 5.
I just don't know what to think.
Any thoughts? Idea? Emotional outbursts? Rude gestures?

 

[marcbarsby13]

I've got mallards and she did the same type of thing earlier this year. It was her first clutch and seemed to be going to plan. 13 eggs. Would b sitting on them most of the day etc. My son then started finding pieces of broken eggs in other parts of her run. She buried her nest,which I took to her burying them so they would be covered when she wasn't on them. She eventually started getting off more so we decided to take the eggs and put in the incubator. We found four left. The dirt was packed around them so hard we had to literally dig them up. After what should have been her 28 days the eggs were stinking and black on the inside. She tried laying another nest but stopped after 6. We took those and reincubated. Happy to say they are veining nicely along side 36 chicks. No clue where all her eggs went. Crushed under dirt it looked like for a couple.

 

[Blondiega1]

I've got mallards and she did the same type of thing earlier this year. It was her first clutch and seemed to be going to plan. 13 eggs. Would b sitting on them most of the day etc. My son then started finding pieces of broken eggs in other parts of her run. She buried her nest,which I took to her burying them so they would be covered when she wasn't on them. She eventually started getting off more so we decided to take the eggs and put in the incubator. We found four left. The dirt was packed around them so hard we had to literally dig them up. After what should have been her 28 days the eggs were stinking and black on the inside. She tried laying another nest but stopped after 6. We took those and reincubated. Happy to say they are veining nicely along side 36 chicks. No clue where all her eggs went. Crushed under dirt it looked like for a couple.

Thanks for the reply.
I just don't know what to think.
There were 11 last friday. She buried them with leaves and I couldn't get a count again until today and there's only 5 now.
One is freshly laid as it's still nice and white compared to the others so I know she just laid it this morning.
So where'd the other 6 go? No sign of them anywhere and nest doesn't appear disturbed by a predator.

I just don't know........

 

[marcbarsby13]

Same. 8 or so missing. But no sign of anything. I know the feeling

 

[HollyDuckFarmer]

Maybe she is eating them? Same has happened here and i attributed it to an egg eater.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Ever thought maybe a 4 legged predator or a snake was helping themselves to the eggs?

 

[Blondiega1]

Ever thought maybe a 4 legged predator or a snake was helping themselves to the eggs?

That has crossed my mind but wouldn't a predator take them all?

 

[Miss Lydia]

That has crossed my mind but wouldn't a predator take them all?

Not if it's a snake it would eat one whole then go away for about 3-4 days come back and eat again, course living in GA. I'd say you have plenty of snakes .most predators haven't anyway to carry eggs other than their mouths. a duck egg would probably fill it up.