Set eggs February 12th! Hatch a long with me!

[Squawkbox]

I know it's only day 19, but the one has been pipped for about 16 hours and it isn't doing a thing. How long is too long to wait? I'm not sure which egg the chirping is coming from, so what if one can't breathe in there because the membrane hasn't been pipped through?
Oh why must this be so stressful!

 

[CupOJoe42]

Hatching IS nerve-wrecking!! I can tell you that on my first hatch, I had a chick pip and zip and cheep away, but didn't break through the membrane. I decided to leave it alone, and it ended up dying in the shell. This is my second hatch and I had a chick pip yesterday. When I got up this morning, it had zipped and another egg was half-zipped. They were both peeping away, but not progressing and the membrane looked dry. No other eggs have pipped yet. I decided to intervene and gently pulled the shell off and opened the membrane to free the chicks. I told myself that I would stop if there was blood or if the yolk hadn't been absorbed. Now that they are free, they are wiggling and peeping and looking tired, but okay. We'll see how they are doing in a little while.

It's a really hard call, and you have to use your own judgement. If the chick has only pipped and is still peeping away, you might want to give it more time to zip.

 

[TennesseeChicken]

I have eight pipping!!! Two have cracked through the shell!

 

[Squawkbox]

My first hatch I had to help them all because they were shrink wrapped! What the heck!
I don't know.. one is peeping very loud, and I just heard a peep from the other one..it sounded distressed. I think I am going to help as then I know for sure what is happening and not wondering if it is alive or if it can breathe.

Hatching IS nerve-wrecking!! I can tell you that on my first hatch, I had a chick pip and zip and cheep away, but didn't break through the membrane. I decided to leave it alone, and it ended up dying in the shell. This is my second hatch and I had a chick pip yesterday. When I got up this morning, it had zipped and another egg was half-zipped. They were both peeping away, but not progressing and the membrane looked dry. No other eggs have pipped yet. I decided to intervene and gently pulled the shell off and opened the membrane to free the chicks. I told myself that I would stop if there was blood or if the yolk hadn't been absorbed. Now that they are free, they are wiggling and peeping and looking tired, but okay. We'll see how they are doing in a little while.
It's a really hard call, and you have to use your own judgement. If the chick has only pipped and is still peeping away, you might want to give it more time to zip.

 

[speckledhen]

They all sound distressed when they cheep, though! That doesn't mean they are. Day 19 is much too early. You could do more harm than good. The yolk is probably not absorbed yet, blood is probably still in the veins so you could make it bleed out.


I have one zipping that I didn't even see was pipped, so you never know.

 

[TennesseeChicken]

How long should the pipping and zipping take?

My first hatch I had to help them all because they were shrink wrapped! What the heck!
I don't know.. one is peeping very loud, and I just heard a peep from the other one..it sounded distressed. I think I am going to help as then I know for sure what is happening and not wondering if it is alive or if it can breathe.

 

[CupOJoe42]

If you can hear cheeping, it is breathing. If it is only pipped and not zipped, I would leave it alone. Every egg is different. There is no set rule on how long it is supposed to take. There are too many factors involved... temperature, humidity, parent history, handling of the egg, incubator placement, etc.

 

[speckledhen]

If your humidity is high enough, it's fine. Do you have a hygrometer in the bator and if so, did you calibrate it for accuracy?

 

[TennesseeChicken]

I don't have a hygrometer. I just added water as per the instructions on the incubator. There's still water in it. It's only been a few hours, so I'm not worried, yet. LOL This is my first time incubating, so I'm just thrilled that some are pipping!

 

[Baggagolers]

Two hatch and another piped. So far one Easter egger leghorn cross and a barred rock and Rhode island red cross.