Poop on eggs due to hatch in a day or 2

[wnc mtn girl]

We just got home from vacation & my broody hen pooped only in her box while we were gone. It's a mess. My husband replaced all her bedding then washed her 6 eggs under warm water since they were covered in poop. We put the eggs under her around midnight July 4th so the eggs should be hatching in a day or 2. I'm worried now because he washed off the bloom. Will the chicks be ok? This is our 1st broody experience

 

[KayTee]

It's not the ideal situation, because poop contains bacteria, which could pass through the shell and cause infection inside, killing the chicks.  In this situation I would probably have tried to wipe the majority of the poop off if possible, rather than washing it, as the water is more likely to pass through the eggshell and carry the bacteria with it.  Having said that, I know very well what broody poop can be like, so you may not have had much of a choice other than to wash it off.

All you can do now is cross your fingers, wait and see. 

I'll be crossing my fingers for you as well.

 

[wnc mtn girl]

Today is day 21.....she has 2 live chicks, is sitting on more eggs but she was eating a dead chick!!!!!! Is that normal????? I have no idea if it was alive or dead when she started eating it

 

[KayTee]

It is perfectly normal for a hen to eat the eggshell and anything left inside it after a chick has hatched, especially since she has been pretty much starving herself for the past three weeks. It could be that the chick hatched (or started to) but then died - and in the natural world it is a shame to let such a good source of protein go to waste! Not a pleasant thought from a human point of view, but perfectly logical for an animal.

The fact that she has accepted the live chicks leads me to believe that the chick probably died of natural causes - it is rare (although possible) for a hen to attack her own chicks.

I would leave the other eggs under her for another 24 hours or so - she will be happy to sit on the nest for at least this long with the new chicks under her, and it will give the eggs a chance if they are late hatchers. If nothing is happening after this time then chances are that they are dead, but you could always check by floating them in a jug of water at around 37°C. (The temperature is critical, because if it is too cold or too hot it can shock the chick inside the shell and kill it). Watch the egg for a moment - if it just floats then it is dead, but if it bobs around then there is a live chick in there, moving around.

Fingers crossed for the other eggs, but if you have two live chicks already from a compromised hatch then you're not doing too badly.

 

[wnc mtn girl]

Thank you so much. We now have 3 hatched that are doing great. She took them out to eat & drink and then went back to sit on the last 2 eggs. The waiting game is hard on my impatient self, lol. I hope the other 2 hatch. We have a 3rd chic!!! It's TINY..... 1/2 the size of the other 2!!! It must be a banty

 

[KayTee]

I'm glad you've got 3 chicks

The waiting part us the hardest of all, especially when some have already hatched.
Enjoy the new additions to your flock. Your broody will do all the hard work for you, but you will waste a huge amount of time just watching them all - chicks are so funny and really addictive!