nest attacked by other hens...will eggs still hatch?

[kgdubois]

I've got a broody who has been setting on eggs for almost three weeks. I've got her in a huge dog crate, which I keep closed off so my other hens don't get in there...the other morning as I was changing out her food & water, she escaped. I couldn't catch her, so had to leave the crate opened so she could get back in to her nest.

When I went down that evening, the nest had been completely destroyed (I guess by another hen) and she was only setting on four of the eight eggs. I found one egg in the coop, which had been eaten (evidence of chick was there, ick). I rebuilt her nest and found the other eggs, which were lukewarm. Is there any hope of them hatching?

I cannot remember exactly when she started setting on these, but it should hopefully be in a few days. She is a white leghorn, and has been setting for going on two and a half months...and I really want her to get done already. I had been trying to break her of being broody, but she refused, so I decided to let her hatch out some chicks...any ideas, y'all? Thanks!

 

[Sphinx]

Yep, I bet they're fine. I've had hens get off the eggs for several hours and still had a successful hatch.

Another time, my incubator died sometime during the night, and when I discovered it the next morning, the eggs had no heat at all to them. I took them out to a handy broody, and I had 3/5 hatch.

 

[donrae]

I had a game hen attacked by a fox during the last week of brooding, don't recall exactly what day. Nest was all torn up, I'm not sure how long the hen was off the nest as I found her in her broody trance a good hundred and fifty feet away in the morning. 4 eggs were not destroyed, and 3 hatched. I called it a win!