Worried About Survival

[RAB]

One of my hens has finally started sitting on eggs. We used to have tons of chickens when I was little but dad sold them off and now I am starting to get my own little collection of chickens (I have 5 hens now, Wyandottes and Opringtons). Dad is a little rusty on the whole chick deal so I came for extra help.

About the 21 of July (15 days from today) I noticed that my hen had been sitting on several eggs. We have a big nesting box in a chicken house but of course they don't use it and lay all of their eggs behind the box. I'm not sure if they all have been layed by this particular hen but she sits on on them. She is up to about 10 eggs I think now. I candled them with my flashlight this morning because we don't have a proper candeling box but I am pretty sure there are deveolping chicks inside of them. Unfortunately, the one I was most positive about had a crack in it, and when I set it down on the floor it cracked open and an embryo was in it. :/ I am hoping that this means the other eggs are making progress, because if not I have lost my one and only chick.

After I candeled the eggs I picked them all up and put them in a nest of straw in a rubber feed pan and put it in a rabbit hutch. I put the hen in the hutch and she is now sitting on them. The only problem I am having is she had not sat on them for probably 24 hours. I am worried that the chicks will not hatch because of this. My rooster was out and got eaten by something so I really need these eggs to hatch. Can anyone tell me if they will survive or will have a chance?

Thanks!

 

[Whittni]

I think the eggs will be fine. Keep mom-hen and the clutch of eggs in that hutch. Don't worry about the broken egg, the shell was probably too thin anyway. Just give it a few weeks and see if the eggs are any good.

 

[Sphinx]

Why do you think she hadn't sat on them for 24 hours? Hens do get up occasionally to eat and drink, so it's ok if they're off the nest for a little while. 24 hours would be kind of iffy though.

I agree with Whittni, if that cracked egg was that delicate, it probably would've have survived to hatching.

 

[RAB]

I had moved her nest from behind the nesting box to a box in the corner of the chicken house and I had not seen her sit on them after I moved them. I placed her in the box but she had just hopped out and ran and I didn't see her go back in. I might be over-exagurating when I say 24 hours but I know she didn't sit on them during the day that day.

This is my first time hatching chicks all by myself so I'm really excited and trying to make sure everything is perfect so it works ^_^ I walk by her probably at least 10 times a day just to make sure she is okay lol call me obsessive

 

[bobbi-j]

Something to think about in the future - if you need to move a setting hen and her nest, it works better to do it at night.

 

[RAB]

I think it's day 21, it might be tomorrow though, not exactly sure which day was officially the day she started sitting, but there are none hatched yet ):