Intervention: Helping Your Chicks Hatch

[heatherlaw]

Update: I panicked when I realized that her beak was at the small end of the egg opposite of where she "piped" so I picked away the shell and saw that the membrane was no longer bloody so I carefully removed it. She immediately stretched out and started cheeping and squirming. She's all dry now and looks great. hope she's in the clear

 

[imlovinmyskin]

Help... I have three that were shrink wrapped and I got them opened up without disturbing the veins/lining... So the rest is up to them. See pic please... They were wrapped in white..
I had two hatch on their own so I'm not sure why some are shrink wrapped..

My big question is, I hear one peeping with no pips yet... I can't find the thread that says how long before I can intervene and break a pip above the air cell lines???

 

[imlovinmyskin]

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

Help... I have three that were shrink wrapped and I got them opened up without disturbing the veins/lining... So the rest is up to them. See pic please... They were wrapped in white..
I had two hatch on their own so I'm not sure why some are shrink wrapped..

My big question is, I hear one peeping with no pips yet... I can't find the thread that says how long before I can intervene and break a pip above the air cell lines???

Your membrane looks ok, white and moist. I would not do anything else with them now. The blood needs to absorb. Because there is blood they are not ready to hatch yet. Keep the humidity high as with no shell it could dry out now. How long had they been pipped before you removed the shell?

They can be peeping from the egg for up to 24 hours before they externally pip. Then it could be up to another 24 hours before they start to zip and hatch.

Here is an assisted hatch article ~ https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/step-by-step-guide-to-assisted-hatching

Good luck

 

[imlovinmyskin]

Thank you @Yorkshire coop I have been searching but in my phone searching is tough. They had all pipped this morning... I guess I got nervous... I am beside myself right now as this is my 4th hatch and so far the most successful...
First hatch was a dud. Second hatch only 2 of 12 made it. Third hatch failed because I had to I out of town and left DD in charge... So this hatch is bringing me to happy tears.. 3 look just like the one I posted above, and one is peeping in his shell... No pips yet...
I will go read that link and go to sleep... Zzz zzz and wake up to happy babies

 

[imlovinmyskin]

The 2 small ones that hatched today...

eeeeeekkkk

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Chickens have teeth. Well one tooth anyway. This tooth on the tip of the upper bill and is called an egg tooth. Its only purpose is to score the inside of the eggshell cutting the shell into two pieces as the chick goes around and around inside the egg prior to hatching. To hatch properly the chick's head should be under it's Right Wing on I think day 20. If the humidity is too low then the chick becomes stuck to the inside of the egg and dies from exhaustion. This is why I only set healthy, full-sized, well formed eggs laid by strong, healthy, hens who are in their prime and also why the proper handing and storage of hatching eggs is important. A chick embryo can become stuck on day one. Just saying. Stuck embryos always die (its natures plan) sometimes even before incubation begins.

 

[imlovinmyskin]

2 more arrived....appear healthy yay!

One little one didn't make it...


One more with a big pip... Going to go back to sleep...

 

[Crashcoop]

Well, I followed your advice last night with our last chick- she had been struggling with just a small hole for almost 10 hours and it was getting dry and tough all around. She was the 2nd to have a hole and then just moved her beak in and out- not around unzipping- all day long. She is struggling but I think she will make it!! We did not unzip her all the way- just enough to get things moving. Her membrane was so much thinker than the others and seem to stiffen despite all the others doing fine with the humidity. Still not sure if she was just too early or needed help but like you said, you have to decide to do it or watch it die. Thanks for the advice.

 

[khloe98]

Hi I'm not sure whether I need to intervene,
Chick has been like this since around 9:30 this morning membrane seems to be covering it's head, also I've been wetting it to make sure it doesn't dry out it just hasn't made any progress? It is still moving and cheeping I just don't want it to dry out during the night