Day 21 and only 1 pip and now nothing. What should I do?

[KLRA]

So happy for you! I love waking up to new chicks Hoping for a 100% hatch!

 

[gwendalynn28]

Three chicks have hatched now! Got my fingers crossed that I'll get three more before its all over!

 

[gwendalynn28]

Well, chick number 3 has something wrong with it. It looks like a bloody, dried up cord hanging from its vent. I pulled on the cord a little because the vent looks pretty swollen. It appears to be full of puss. It looked like it was hurting the chick to pull on the cord so I left it alone. I'm not sure what to do. I have medicated chick starter in the brooder but I don't know if this will be enough. The chick doesn't stand up and walk around. It kind of shimmies across the floor and only stands briefly before flopping back down. Its legs seem okay though. I think that swollen vent is causing it a lot of pain. Right after the chick hatched it was dragging its shell around by that cord and it was chirping its little head off.

If anyone knows what this is and how to fix it, please let me know! Thanks!

 

[gwendalynn28]

I still have 4 eggs in the incubator that haven't even pipped and today is day 22. How much longer should I wait? I so happy I got the two healthy chicks though and I'm hoping that chick 3 gets better and does well!

 

[SuperChickMama]

Our babies hatched through the 23 day! We were so impatient and our runt "Squirt" had a gimpy leg and a bubble on her belly button area. It has dried up and gone away.... although, the pus would be some cause for concern. You could clean it and hope for the best. We also had to help ours out of the shell because they would drag them around for a while.

 

[gwendalynn28]

I am worried about the pus. This is probably something that has been developing for some time. The chick doesn't want me messing with it and it seems painful to mess with the vent. I would love to get that pus out because with that crusty blood on the opening it won't be able to poop. If it can't poop its only a matter of time before it dies. I am trying to be patient with the hatch. Its just disappointing that I don't have even a pip on the other four eggs. It would be very encouraging to see a pip that way I would know the eggs are still alive. I'm going to try cleaning the chick. What can I clean it with? Hydrogen peroxide maybe? Just mild soap and water? This is new for me. Its seems that I'm learning something new with every hatch that I have! It would be awesome to have a hatch that went well with no complications! I think everyone wants that though!

 

[SuperChickMama]

I would say warm soap and water and if you have neosporin or blue kote, I'm not sure about the toxicity of Hydrogen Peroxide for a baby chick....

 

[gwendalynn28]

I left the little chick alone last night since it was its first day of life. I checked on them this morning when I got up and all three are up and moving around the brooder. I haven't checked the little ones vent this morning yet. If it improves on its own I may just leave it alone. I think this chick may be a hen too! One chick is quite bigger than the other two so I'm thinking perhaps that one is a rooster since Blue Laced Red Wyandotte roosters seem to be quite a bit larger than the hens! That would be cool to get two hens! I still don't have a pip in the other four eggs yet. Its day 23 for those eggs. I'm going to give them till day 25. I was wondering if it was safe to candle them this late in the incubation? I'm worried about them becoming shrink wrapped if I remove them from the incubator. Any suggestions or should I just keep biting my nails and staring into the incubator window?

 

[SuperChickMama]

I read a post of a lady who on day 26 was going to throw them away and heard a pip from!! It could take longer, I'm not sure about candling them, I think it would be ok if you're quick about it.

 

[gwendalynn28]

Well, I had someone tell me that this might be the umbilicus and I probably shouldn't mess with it. The white stuff on the inside may be unabsorbed yolk. I'm going to keep an eye on the chick but its up and moving around better today. Its a beautiful little chick. I'm thinking its going to a blue when it grows up. The other two look like they are going to be splash. I do hope they survive. I only incubated the 7 eggs and nothing from the remaining 4 so far. I'm going to try to candle them tonight if there still isn't a pip. Today is day 23 and I have more eggs waiting to go into the incubator that have already set too long. I plan on keeping these chickens for myself though which is why I had such high hopes for this hatch. I only have 2 Blue Laced Red Wyandotte hens and 2 BLRW roos. I was hoping to add a few more hens to the flock. So, I'll just keep impatiently waiting for another pip. I'm trying to keep myself busy, otherwise I'm peeking in every 10 minutes or so!