- Jun 4, 2008
- 10
- 0
- 22
Hi everyone,
My classroom neighbor and I had our first ever classroom hatch this week. It was very exciting! We both teach first grade. We incubated 24 leghorn chick eggs. So far we have 14 chicks.
We began with a dozen in each incubator. After candling at 8 days, we each removed two eggs that were either infertile or had blood rings, leaving us with 10 each.
Unfortunately, my neighbor's incubator continually leaked water. We were able to keep the humidity up around 40%, but she was understandably concerned about keeping her humidity level up high enough during the last three days, so she moved all of her eggs to my incubator for the last three days, which fell over a weekend (I was out sick with pneumonia.) Over the weekend, I think the temperature may have been a bit too high - about 100 - and I know the humidity was too high.
I came in Monday morning (day 21) to find 2 chicks already walking around! More continued to hatch throughout the day and that night. Most are healthy and peeping up a storm - the kids can't believe the racket they make! It seems like the chicks like the noise - when the kids are noisy, the chicks sleep. If the kids get really quiet, the chicks peep like mad!
One of our chicks was born with his yolk not fully absorbed and an unhealed navel. We separated him from the others, putting him in the other incubator. He was moving around quite a bit at first, but he grew very weak very quickly. His little beak was very pale and he was barely moving, so we brought him to the vet in the afternoon and they put him to sleep.
One of the chicks pipped on monday but was still stuck in the shell Tuesday afternoon. I could see him still peeping, so I decided to help him out around 3 pm. I removed his shell a tiny bit at a time - he was pretty stuck to it. Once I got a bit free, he tried like heck to get the rest off himself! It was amazing to see.
He had luckily absorbed all of his yolk, but is navel had not yet healed either, so a little of his intestines were coming out (gross and horrible, I know.) He didn't appear to be in any pain, and he wasn't bleeding, so that's a good sign. Most everyone told me he had to be put down too, but there's no way I'm killing an animal that still stands a chance.
I read as many sites as I could find about it and found the best advice here - to push them back in, wrap him up tight with wet gauze, and hope it heals! I was the surgeon and my friend played nurse - it was crazy. He didn't appear to be in any pain, so that was good. He hated being bound up, but it seemed the safest way to make sure he didn't hurt himself.
When my husband picked me up around 4, we brought him to the vet. I told them I'd like to save him if I could - he cheeped the whole way there, so he's pretty strong, despite having his guts hanging out! She took a look at him, cleaned the area up for me and gave me some antiseptic cream to put on at least 3 times a day, more often if possible. She said it would hopefully dry up and heal if I could get him to not peck at it. All this, and no charge - I owe these people a serious thank you card!
We went back to school, grabbed my friend's incubator (mine still had eggs and 5 drying chicks in it) and some food and brought him home. The little guy's currently cheeping up a storm in my basement! I have been checking on him pretty often and he's looking good. He can walk now, he's not bleeding at all and he will drink water if I dip his beak in it. He's still young, so no big deal if he doesn't eat for a while yet. He has had his first bowel movement - I've never been so excited for poop!
This morning he is a lot drier and walking around a lot. He is one seriously loud little peeper.
I won't give him a name until I'm more confident he'll survive, but so far so good. I'll keep him separated so he won't get pecked at until his skin closes over the opening, which it seems to be doing. As soon as I can, I'll get a second chick in with him so he can get socialized. I'm trying (and succeeding pretty well) to stay detached so I don't get too upset about it. I love animals a lot, so it's tough. It's nice to be able to be helping this one, though I don't know if it will work. Fingers crossed!
Thank you all for your advice and for letting me share my story!
-Jill
My classroom neighbor and I had our first ever classroom hatch this week. It was very exciting! We both teach first grade. We incubated 24 leghorn chick eggs. So far we have 14 chicks.
We began with a dozen in each incubator. After candling at 8 days, we each removed two eggs that were either infertile or had blood rings, leaving us with 10 each.
Unfortunately, my neighbor's incubator continually leaked water. We were able to keep the humidity up around 40%, but she was understandably concerned about keeping her humidity level up high enough during the last three days, so she moved all of her eggs to my incubator for the last three days, which fell over a weekend (I was out sick with pneumonia.) Over the weekend, I think the temperature may have been a bit too high - about 100 - and I know the humidity was too high.
I came in Monday morning (day 21) to find 2 chicks already walking around! More continued to hatch throughout the day and that night. Most are healthy and peeping up a storm - the kids can't believe the racket they make! It seems like the chicks like the noise - when the kids are noisy, the chicks sleep. If the kids get really quiet, the chicks peep like mad!
One of our chicks was born with his yolk not fully absorbed and an unhealed navel. We separated him from the others, putting him in the other incubator. He was moving around quite a bit at first, but he grew very weak very quickly. His little beak was very pale and he was barely moving, so we brought him to the vet in the afternoon and they put him to sleep.
One of the chicks pipped on monday but was still stuck in the shell Tuesday afternoon. I could see him still peeping, so I decided to help him out around 3 pm. I removed his shell a tiny bit at a time - he was pretty stuck to it. Once I got a bit free, he tried like heck to get the rest off himself! It was amazing to see.
He had luckily absorbed all of his yolk, but is navel had not yet healed either, so a little of his intestines were coming out (gross and horrible, I know.) He didn't appear to be in any pain, and he wasn't bleeding, so that's a good sign. Most everyone told me he had to be put down too, but there's no way I'm killing an animal that still stands a chance.
I read as many sites as I could find about it and found the best advice here - to push them back in, wrap him up tight with wet gauze, and hope it heals! I was the surgeon and my friend played nurse - it was crazy. He didn't appear to be in any pain, so that was good. He hated being bound up, but it seemed the safest way to make sure he didn't hurt himself.
When my husband picked me up around 4, we brought him to the vet. I told them I'd like to save him if I could - he cheeped the whole way there, so he's pretty strong, despite having his guts hanging out! She took a look at him, cleaned the area up for me and gave me some antiseptic cream to put on at least 3 times a day, more often if possible. She said it would hopefully dry up and heal if I could get him to not peck at it. All this, and no charge - I owe these people a serious thank you card!
We went back to school, grabbed my friend's incubator (mine still had eggs and 5 drying chicks in it) and some food and brought him home. The little guy's currently cheeping up a storm in my basement! I have been checking on him pretty often and he's looking good. He can walk now, he's not bleeding at all and he will drink water if I dip his beak in it. He's still young, so no big deal if he doesn't eat for a while yet. He has had his first bowel movement - I've never been so excited for poop!
I won't give him a name until I'm more confident he'll survive, but so far so good. I'll keep him separated so he won't get pecked at until his skin closes over the opening, which it seems to be doing. As soon as I can, I'll get a second chick in with him so he can get socialized. I'm trying (and succeeding pretty well) to stay detached so I don't get too upset about it. I love animals a lot, so it's tough. It's nice to be able to be helping this one, though I don't know if it will work. Fingers crossed!
Thank you all for your advice and for letting me share my story!
-Jill
