Some Advice Needed.

[Nestling]

I have raised birds in the past but have never come up against this one. Please tell me what you think.

I am supposed to pick up a pair of Lovebirds and 3 of their chicks Tuesday.
I was told that the hen will keep laying fertile eggs but does not incubate them.
The chicks that did survive , the hen attacked and they had to be moved to another cage.

I intendeded to hand raise any chicks that came from this pair. What would cause a hen not to set and is there anything that I can do to help matters.

These birds are being given to me.
Any and all advice would be very welcome.

[swanwillow]

my guess; they have always BEEN pulled, so at this point having babies in the nestbox is strange to her, and you will always HAVE TO pull.
after this batch, you should see if you can give her a 6 month rest. If shes been laying eggs non-stop for a while, she can be getting worn down too. Calcium loss can cause many MANY problems in birds.

Good luck. If she persists in laying eggs during the rest time, replace the eggs with fakes so that she sits on fakes instead of keeping on laying eggs.