48 hour struggle

[LittleChickenGirl2011]

i have had 36 eggs incubating for the 21 days, of which 22 babies have hatched, and 2 have passed. i still have 8 eggs that havent moved, and 4 that ate trying to hatch at this moment. My concern is with one of these babies.... it has been trying to get out for about 48 hours now. The shell looks about twice as thick as the rest. it is still alive.... but im not sure how much longer it can last... it has a hole about 1/4 inch wide by 1/2 inch long... i can see it breathing still though.... should i peel the shell? should i let nature take it's course?

 

[ChickenPeep]

If there are other babies pipping, then just wait a little longer. It can take a chick up to 3 hours to hatch!

 

[Gypsy07]

Just this week I had one chick that pipped and then did nothing for nearly two full days. The other hatching chicks pecked at his pip hole and made it bigger, and he still didn't do anything. I was getting worried and thinking about stepping in to help, when all of a sudden he started zipping on his own. He motored round the egg in a flash and was out in less than an hour! So I guess he maybe pipped early by accident and just wasn't quite ready to hatch for another two days...

Of course, he could just have easily been stuck, or too weak to turn, or too big to turn, or deformed, or badly positioned... it's a hard one to call. If you have three other chicks hatching, I'd maybe leave this one for a bit longer. You don't want to endanger three more just to help one, do you? The once the other three are out you could investigate a bit further...

 

[cmom]

If the chick is taking over 24 hrs to hatch something must be wrong. It could be stuck. Sometimes they can take 24 hrs or more from pip to hatch. I let them go at least 24 hrs then if I need to I will carefully pick off the shell around the area the chick would normally zip without tearing the membrane and with a Q-tip or my finger I moisten the membrane where I picked off the shell then wrap the egg in a warm moist towel and put it back into the incubator. After a while if the chick doesn't hatch then I help it. If I see any blood I stop and immediately but the egg back into the incubator for a while longer. Then if the egg doesn't hatch I help it out. Sometimes they die but sometimes many live. I had a hatch last weekend where one chick had pipped so I zipped it but after another day in the hatcher it still hadn't hatched. It had shrunk wrapped. It's poor little feet were all curled. I finally hatched it and cleaned it up and put it in one of the hatchers as the other chicks were picking on it. I did hand feed it for several days. Its little feet did uncurl by but it still had spraddle legs. I think that is why it didn't hatch in the first place as in the beginning it couldn't walk. It is improving day by day.

 

[LittleChickenGirl2011]

i lost it, and all the other three. They were just too weak to get out. Should have helped them. When i peeled the egg off none were shrink wrapped... ive also lost a few babies today :'(

 

[Bandana]

Sorry you lost some, but you do have some healthy babies and more experience under your belt. That's a good thing. Have fun with your babies!

 

[N.WChickenGuy]

If it isn't already dead you should help it.
I raise seramas and I have had to help a few of mine what I do if they pip and then nothing else is I take a small nail and use the side of it to continue what the chick started being careful only crack the shell and not break the internal membrane the chick then only has to unzip the membrane and finish hatching like normal. I have yet to lose one doing this but i have certainly saved a few

 

[Gypsy07]

Quote:
Y'know that's awfully sad, but if your humidity was good enough for the first 22 of them to hatch, they obviously weren't shrinkwrapped, and their inability to hatch was probably down to an inherent weakness in the chicks. It seems harsh, I know, but if you're planning to breed from these birds in the future, it's probably for the best that you didn't assist the weak ones. You don't want to breed weakness into your flock...