Hands on hatching and help

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pipAchick said:
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Flash light shinning on first pip.I'm a hoper if you want a science buff you might have to wait a few hours till they wake up.

Know it's scary but try the flash light&peeping
Click to expand...

The flash light helped tons with ours too lol. It would seem like they were giving up so we would look in with the flashlight and they would start chirping and working again lol
 
Well, I lost my first hen last week. In the two years since I started hatching and raising chickens I have never lost one of my flock other than Peep and we were lucky to have him for the year and a half we did. I had a friend over visiting and we were outside talking and my little white hen (about 1 year old) came over and just stood in front of me with her eyes closed. I pet her picked her up and she'd just close her eyes. No other signs or symptoms. No running eyes or nose, no open sores or cuts. Breathing perfectly normal. Just very lethargic. Now I don't feel up my chicks, so knowing what "eggbound" feels like doesn't come natural to me.
wink.png
But I thought I could feel a lump under there so I treated her for being egg bound, had her secluded in a cage -covered so it was dark and quiet, but nothing. Just a sleepy, non active hen. She died about 24 hours after I noticed something wasn't right.

In happier news I moved out the pet quality silkies and barnyard roo this week. I moved the other four (these are my original flock and the oldest of my girls) to the other coop, and cleaned and put down fresh bedding and got the little silkies out to the coop. They look so adorable and have so much room now. I want to get pics today or tomorrow. I still have to fix the fencing around the run where the big ones made escape routes under the fence, and then they can have access to the run as well.

I'm in the middle of trying to integrate the little Spitzhaubens in the main coop and getting ready to try to break all the crazy broodies that are in there. I think I'm up to four now. Have I ever mentioned I didn't like broodiness??? So I have to set up a couple cages today for them.

On top of all the chicken stuff, I'm also trying to plan out my father's 85th birthday BBQ for next month and get the house in order for that. (We have a lot of crap in this place we don't need. And my son'ts toys...omg....he could make some needy kids very happy with half this crap that is filling my upstairs.) I do think I know what I am doing for his cake though. Just hope it comes out in reality like it lookds in my head. lol

And that's my update for now.
 
I need some help. This is my first time hatching and we are now at day 22. I planned to be hands off but that changed even on day 20. LOL
I took them out yesterday and this morning to see if they were still moving around. This morning only one would move but now, a few hours later it is moving the egg around in the bator so, that is a relief!! They both are moving enough to move their eggs but neither have piped yet. When I candel I can see where their head and feet are and there is a space there showing up and it is on the end where the air pocket is so that is all good from what I have read. I have it marked on the egg.
I guess my question is should I help it pip in case the shells are to thick/hard or just keep being patient? There are only 2 eggs in the bator and I know 21 days isn't exact.... I just don't want anything to happen to them after coming this far. They are only mutt eggs we we got to help a cochin chicken go broody because she was STILL laying even though she was in the worst part of her molt when we got her (only to later find out she was really a frazzle and will probably always look that bad - NOT happy we were lied to about that but now she will be protected and loved on daily by the 5 year old) We have fallen in love with the chicks in these eggs we have never even met. Me and the 5 year old are very anxious...

What should we do? Be patient??

RebekahTN
 
RebekahTN said:
I need some help. This is my first time hatching and we are now at day 22. I planned to be hands off but that changed even on day 20. LOL
I took them out yesterday and this morning to see if they were still moving around. This morning only one would move but now, a few hours later it is moving the egg around in the bator so, that is a relief!! They both are moving enough to move their eggs but neither have piped yet. When I candel I can see where their head and feet are and there is a space there showing up and it is on the end where the air pocket is so that is all good from what I have read. I have it marked on the egg.
I guess my question is should I help it pip in case the shells are to thick/hard or just keep being patient? There are only 2 eggs in the bator and I know 21 days isn't exact.... I just don't want anything to happen to them after coming this far. They are only mutt eggs we we got to help a cochin chicken go broody because she was STILL laying even though she was in the worst part of her molt when we got her (only to later find out she was really a frazzle and will probably always look that bad - NOT happy we were lied to about that but now she will be protected and loved on daily by the 5 year old) We have fallen in love with the chicks in these eggs we have never even met. Me and the 5 year old are very anxious...

What should we do? Be patient??

RebekahTN
Click to expand...
When you counted you didn't count set day as day one right? You don't start counting until after they have been set 24 hours. If there are no internal pips, pipping the shell is not going to help at all, and has a higher chance of slowing things down because after they internally pip, the co2 build up is what prompts them to externally pip. An unneccessary hole to the shell is going to slow down that process. I am very hands on, but I would not pip a shell unless I had an internal pip that was pushing past 24 hours. There really isn't much you can do until the chick has externally pipped and has been externally pipped for 18 hours or more so the egg to chick vascular system has time to shut down and to make absolutely sure all yolk has been absorbed.
 
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That is probably my answer!!!! I did start counting day one as set day. That's a relief, glad it was something so simple - it usually is. So today or tomorrow even would be a more reasonable time to expect a baby. Thank you too for explaining the reasoning instead of just don't do it. I wouldn't have if it that was what was recommended but having the reasoning behind it makes the whole process more understandable and make sense. I read and read and read on these forums and learn so much but there is still so much more to learn!!

Again Thanks for explaining the reasoning and not just saying don't do it. I really appreciate that.

We sit and stare at them for minutes at a time watching and waiting for an egg movement. We get so excited when we see a movement and have daddy come look but of course it stops and he isn't patient/interested enough YET to keep watching forever. It's like being pregnant and having him put his hand on my belly and they stop.....

I DID finally get him interested enough after 3 months to make me another coop. YAY!!! He kept watching me and my 5 year olds efforts and telling us how cute we were. LOL (We turned the bottom part of her outdoor playhouse/slide into 3 small coops.)


RebekahTN
 

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