Intervention: Helping Your Chicks Hatch

[LittleApplegate]

...Ok...
We messed up on our first run and have a staggered clutch. Hen left the nest with her two chicks leaving behind several eggs... which we candled and float tested. Seems like they're ok so made makeshift incubator out of soup pot with lid, desk lamp, thermometer and water spritzer. One egg pipped and stayed with one tiny hole for over 12 hours. We found this thread and zipped open a ring of shell. 3 hours later nothing yet, the membrane had definitely been white and tough-- we spent that 3 hours soaking. Finally, did a little prodding to help "push" the chick out of the membrane hole about half way. It has been now laying this way 7 hours. Just now my 6 year old pulled hte rest of the egg off its backside. It's laying there breathing, moving a bit now and again, eyes still closed, wet (on a wet papertowel, in the warm bator)... it's bottom looks a little... unhealthy with some blood at the butt, normal? Feeling bad, not sure what to do. Probably did WAY too much. Other eggs got nothin', been turning periodically. I think I will just bundle the wee chickie up and give love and prayers... Tips, advise?
I promise, next year will be better.... I think the fluctuations really challenged things.

 

[LittleApplegate]

Good news. The Love worked, so fast (+ a little common sense) Got chickie out of the incubator with it's now high humidity, dried her off and used a paint brush to fluff her down up, all under a warm lamp. She opened her eyes, did some healthful thrashing about and moving, and peeping, became very responsive. She even ran a couple steps on my hands! I put her under her mother now that it is dusk. All seems well. <3
To those who say to never intervene... well... keeping chickens is an intervention in itself. And trying to fix the previous interventions (incubator)... etc. And while my hubby is with the "if it couldn't hatchon it's own.." survival of the fittest mindset, well Poo! If the chicken got hurt or sick, we wouldn't just call it nature and not try to help it! If it were my child or friend I'd never just chalk it up to "too weak to survive: so be it" No. NoooOOooo. And yet, I can accept inevitabilities of nature, death on the farm etc. But nothing is black and white!

 

[bigbird]

My goose started pipping Wednesday night. Since late evening it doesn't look like it has changed at all. It's now Friday 2:45 am, and I don't know what to do. All of the feathers that I can see are dry, and it's still peeping. When do I need to help?

 

[RubyNala97]

...Ok... 
We messed up on our first run and have a staggered clutch.  Hen left the nest with her two chicks leaving behind several eggs... which we candled and float tested.  Seems like they're ok so made makeshift incubator out of soup pot with lid, desk lamp, thermometer and water spritzer.  One egg pipped and stayed with one tiny hole for over 12 hours.  We found this thread and zipped open a ring of shell.  3 hours later nothing yet, the membrane had definitely been white and tough-- we spent that 3 hours soaking.  Finally, did a little prodding to help "push" the chick out of the membrane hole about half way.  It has been now laying this way 7 hours.  Just now my 6 year old pulled hte rest of the egg off its backside.  It's laying there breathing, moving a bit now and again, eyes still closed, wet (on a wet papertowel, in the warm bator)... it's bottom looks a little... unhealthy with some blood at the butt, normal?  Feeling bad, not sure what to do.  Probably did WAY too much.  Other eggs got nothin', been turning periodically.  I think I will just bundle the wee chickie up and give love and prayers... Tips, advise?  
I promise, next year will be better.... I think the fluctuations really challenged things.  

eggs can take 24 hours after they pip to make progress. Was there any blood when you helped it out? I'm glad it's doing better now! Just make sure it can keep up with mom & its other siblings since it's a few days younger. They can get left behind and cold if they don't keep up. Also you can stop turning the eggs now since they are close to hatch. When you candle them does one side of the air cell dip way down? If It does, it means they are close to internal pip.

My goose started pipping Wednesday night. Since late evening it doesn't look like it has changed at all. It's now Friday 2:45 am, and I don't know what to do. All of the feathers that I can see are dry, and it's still peeping. When do I need to help?

I think geese can take up to 48 hours after pip. Has it made any progress? You can take the egg out and look into the pip hole, maybe make it just a tiny bit bigger with some flat tip tweezers and moisten the inner membrane with a qtip and warm water or bacitracin, just make sure not to get any in the nostrils, and when you dampen the inner membrane you can see the veins. If there are still active veins then it's definitely not ready yet.

 

[SouthernPride]

I have messed this one up big time. I put 13 eggs in my incubator on March 5. The eggs I collected from my 3 duck hens, over the course of 7 days. I candle them on day 14 and they all looked viable. Day 28 comes and goes and I hear nothing. Peeping is finally heard on day 29 and piping starts that evening but they are weak, not very active at all. Here is it day 31 and I have one duckling that hatched on day 30, one that I had to assist but it's feet were deformed so I had to cull it. I have 2 more that needed help. I assisted with the egg removal, they are now very vocal but still have the yolk to absorb. One has finish that process but the belly button still protrudes quite a bit and he is making no effort to stand up. The other one is chilling while he finishes his yolk. I am keeping them moist with paper towels.

Lessons learned are; 1) make sure temperature stays consistent; 2) Humidity is VERY VERY important. I got sick and was in bed for 4 days. I think that is when things went bad for the poor little guys. Not only did it take them longer to develop but they could not get out of the shell because of the lack of moisture.

This is my 4th time incubating. I usually have at least a 50% hatch rate. I may get 3 out of 13 eggs. Not good.

 

[Cindi1972]

I had to do this last night. I loved reading your post. Most everything I read, made me so afraid, but after reading this.... and having successfully helped my chick out of her egg last night, I feel empowered. ;-)

 

[coyote bait]

I Need some help friends. My little Sebastopol hatched yesterday but he did come out of the bottom half of the egg. I moved him and his shell to an incubator I am using as a broader till they are older. This morning he pushed out of the bottom shell but the umbilical cord is still attached. There is thick dark blood almost like a clot and grey matter on it. There is a little yolk left. He or she, is very vocal, I can hear in the other room! He hasn't gotten up but is starting to fluff up. He will lift he's head and chirp when I put the flashlight on him. Do you think he'll be OK? I'm trying to upload pictures but I'm having trouble. If you see one from me with no comments you'll know it belongs here!

 

[Cindi1972]

If he is awake, alert and drying off I would say the hard part is over. Let him be and I'm sure he will be fine.

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

I would agree with cindi that he should be fine when he dries off and fluffs up. The umbilical should dry up and fall off on its own. Please don't pull anything as the could cause an abdomen rupture.

I'm a little confused with what you have said about brooding in the incubator
How long are you planning on keeping them in the incubator?

 

[heatherlaw]

I have a chick who externally pipped but there was some blood and it looks like the chicks beak isn't at the pip. I can see part of its leg through the hole. Membrane was totally white and stiff. I moistened the membrane and the chick is peeping but not trying to hatch. What do I do.