Should these eggs be cleaned off?

[Pin Feather]

Hello Everyone,
I had a Buff Orpington hen go broody on me last month. She started with five eggs, and even though she is in her own fenced pen, she was down to three yesterday morning. No sign of the other two. Then I checked on her again in the afternoon and there was only two. There is obviously something getting the eggs, so last night I snatched up the last two and put them in my incubator in the house. The problem I have is the eggs have dried yolk all over them, so I can't decide whether or not to clean them off. If the chicks are still alive, they should hatch this coming Thursday or Friday. If I leave the dried yolk on the eggs, the shell will have trouble "breathing", but if I take it off, I will remove the bloom and could infect the chicks. Any thoughts?

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

Hi, I would leave them as they are. You have saved them and that's the main thing it shouldn't effect them. Mother hen wouldn't be cleaning them!! With them being that far along if they are alive they should be well developed and I wouldn't start messing with them. Have you candled then to see if they are alive? Hope all turns out well for you and good luck.

 

[Pin Feather]

Thanks for the reply! I don't have a candler, but with a strong flashlight, I know there are chicks in them. I just don't know if they are still alive. I can wait it out and see if they hatch at the end of the week. The candler will go on my Christmas list this year!

 

[AmericanMom]

Hello Everyone,
I had a Buff Orpington hen go broody on me last month. She started with five eggs, and even though she is in her own fenced pen, she was down to three yesterday morning. No sign of the other two. Then I checked on her again in the afternoon and there was only two. There is obviously something getting the eggs, so last night I snatched up the last two and put them in my incubator in the house. The problem I have is the eggs have dried yolk all over them, so I can't decide whether or not to clean them off. If the chicks are still alive, they should hatch this coming Thursday or Friday. If I leave the dried yolk on the eggs, the shell will have trouble "breathing", but if I take it off, I will remove the bloom and could infect the chicks. Any thoughts?

Its your broody that more likely than not eating those eggs, I wouldn't use her again and I wouldn't hatch any of her eggs, you don't want that trait to be passed on..

As for the eggs, they will probably be fine, I had a hen fight in a broodys nest resulting in broken eggs, all remaining eggs hatched 15 days later