My setting chicken has a terrible smell!!

[vlehrer]

I noticed my chicken sitting on her eggs aout 3 weeks ago. Then last week, I noticed a bad smell from the nest. In the nest, the eggs were covered in poop, she was missing her feathers on her chest, the nest was damp and there were maggots in there. I made her a new nest, wiped the eggs down with a dry paper towel and moved her there. She is still sitting but the smell is not going away. I was expecting something to happen by now, is there a chance they still might hatch or should I throw them?

Please help

 

[e wolf]

if your hen has been setting on these eggs for more than 21 or22 days they are not going to hatch. what you are smelling are rotten eggs if she continues to set them they will explode under her leaving a worse mess than the one you already had. you did not say but do you have a rooster? hens will get broody and set eggs even if they are not fertile.

 

[vlehrer]

Thanks for replying. I went and took the eggs out. I opened them and they were rotten. Some looked like they were fertilized, and the fetus somewhat developed, but they were dead and rotting. I am trying to figure out what could have happened. I did give her food and water in the nest - is it possible the water spilled over the eggs and killed them?
Another thing I did was put some more eggs under her - I think that at one point she had something like 15 eggs. Perhaps that was a bad idea as well. I feel terrible.

She was so diligent in sitting on them I can't imagine that it was anything she did. She is back in the place where the eggs were and she seems so sad. What should I do?

 

[vlehrer]

Thanks for replying. I went and took the eggs out. I opened them and they were rotten. Some looked like they were fertilized, and the fetus somewhat developed, but they were dead and rotting. I am trying to figure out what could have happened. I did give her food and water in the nest - is it possible the water spilled over the eggs and killed them?
Another thing I did was put some more eggs under her - I think that at one point she had something like 15 eggs. Perhaps that was a bad idea as well. I feel terrible.

She was so diligent in sitting on them I can't imagine that it was anything she did. She is back in the place where the eggs were and she seems so sad. What should I do?

 

[Den in Penn]

With a broody don't add eggs after day one, that leads to staggered hatch dates and abandoned eggs. And make them get up off the nest and walk around and get exercise, eat, drink and poop once a day. Think of what sitting for 21 days with out moving will do to a body. Not to mention the pooping in the nest. Yes the wet nest and poop could have suffocated the eggs.