My buff orpington is hatching babies as we speak. Overnight, or sometime this morning, one of her babies hatched, but something went wrong. I don't know what's wrong with him, though. I found the shell he hatched out of and it was unusually soggy, with a bit of yolk and blood left in it. He has a mass of wet, bloody stuff hanging from his "umbilical cord" or "belly button" or whatever you call that. It doesn't look that unusual, but it should be dried by now. He was not quite tucked underneath Mama hen when I found him, so he was cold. He also smells funny. Like a rotten egg. I tucked him under Mama, but got worried about him, so I pulled him out and put him in the incubator. He's perking up a little, but still has his eyes closed. Should I try to dropper feed him some sugar water or electrolyte water? Should I leave him and let nature take its course?
