Intervention: Helping Your Chicks Hatch

Pics
Quote:
Chuckle... chicks with a broody hen DO NOT need a light.

Broodies ARE brooders. My broodies have theirs running around outside at three days. If it gets cool or starts to rain they settle them in nice and warm and wait it out.

Hens are supposed to raise the chicks, get that heat light off that poor hen.
 
hi I have 4 eggs the hen left so I put them on a hotwater bottle. Everyone told me to leave them but as none had pipped and the others hatched 36 hours ago i pipped one i could hear. I managed to find you post on here and joined. I then decided to pip the rest one was rotten and the other 2 dead so that gave me more confidence that I was right to continue to help the one who was cheaping, now all the shell is off but a little bit of blood supply/cord attached should I just leave this to fall off??
Please help this little fella
By the way she successfully hatched 4 by themselves and they are Pekins

x<3x
 
I swore I'd never do it again after a chick I helped out of the shell in my last batch died. I believe it bled to death. I had a buff orpington chick pip the shell sometime last night and made no progress 12 hours later. So I bit the bullet and got out a wash cloth, warm water, tweezers and a plastic tooth pick and carefully started zipping the shell for the little guy. I could tell he(or she) was really weak so I went ahead and did the whole job for him and placed him back in the incubator to warm back up. I really didn't think he was going to make it but I went back an hour later and he was peeping and bouncing all around. So he's in the brooder now with his( or her) siblings. Chalk one up for a successful delivery!
 
Quote:
WHAT?OMG Blackie's a lucky girl!!!!Blackie is a BR pullet that used to be my baby BR.We gave her away:(When Mrs.Matthews(a teacher from my school that studies embroylegy)handhatched her,she had her stomach open and was bleeding badlAll Mrs.Matthews did was wash her off and place her in the incubator.I swore she would be dead.Since our first chicks hatched on a Friday (18 weeks ago,)we had to go back to my school on a weekend,as the incubator was in a classroom!!When we got there,my mom went first as she didn't want me to see a dead chick in a pool of blood.When she looked,she said,"Eight chicks!"Blackie was okay.Her stomach wasn't even open.
 
Yey! Mine too I am glad as the others had died as they didnt even pip so I am sure this was the only chance anyway it is now in with the others and mum and looking well after i just went out with torch and got pecked lol!
I am so happy and named it Justin(e) hehe thanks to reading this forum for advice on helping them out xx
oh and i just used my nails, wet flannel, hot water bottle and lots of love x

Now I have 5 pekin chicks of 4 different colours! cute x
 
Last edited:
Quote:
Congrats!
big_smile.png
 
This is just one of many problems when giving birth,so why does mother nature not encounter these obstacles.For the most part when we encountered egg shell problem not wanting to release, I would slowly help the removal and work with the drying process of the inter skin formed around the chick in the shell..meaning not to rush this process.But I have a first time clutch of 6 eggs under my hen (Black Austrolope). Now her eggs are over due as of yesterday. But before I rush in and start interupting mother nature, I'll give the hen 3 more days. I'll let you know. I don't think there is a clear cut answer as to what to do,but I do lack the experience in this giving birth thing. All chicken breeds would surely account for so many variations and problems.
 
My last hatch last fri I had 4 out of 6 eggs pipped. 3 came out on their own but one which had pipped before most hadn't made any progress. After 15 hours I decided it was time to intervene and it's a good thing I did. The poor thing was adhered to the membrane and coudn't turn. I got him all the way out but he was so weak. 36 hours later and he still a little sleepier than the rest but he's waddling around and making happy peeps. This makes 3 I've had to assist this year. I'm thinking I need to figure out a better way to read the humidity in the incubator even though my two hygrometers read 70% during lockdown. But at least I'm becoming an experienced surgeon.
thumbsup.gif
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom