Question on broody hen -

[hedgehog]

She is very dedicated and has been setting a few weeks. the problem is that other hens have been sneaking eggs into her nest and stepping on and breaking some. I don't know how old the eggs she's setting on are, and the shells are pretty dirty.

I can easily move her to an isolated nest on clean straw and stick some fresh eggs underneath her. That worked for me with another hen. I don't want to do it if there is any chance of her hatching the eggs she has now. Am I safe to assume that if the shells are dirty, the chick inside is dead?

[fasttense]

1. Well, I've had dirty eggs hatch before so it's hard to tell

If it's really dirty like covered in filth, then the chick inside isn't getting any oxygen through the shell and yes it is probably dead. If it is only slightly dirty it could still hatch.

If I were you I would move her to a clean place by herself and add the new eggs and get rid of the older ones. It's just simpler.