It's always best to be patient and wait once chicks pip.Rare do they ever need any help. I always allow time for chicks or ducklings to hatch once pipped, but if there's no progress in a 3 or 4 hours or so, I slowly peel enough to see if there's veins or any sign of blood, if not I peel them out and place them back in the hatcher. At the first sight of any blood or bloody looking veins, I stop and place them back for several hours, and see if they hatch on their own. It is rare that I have to offer assistance, but I been hatching weekly and bi-weekly for the past 8 years steady, so I can usually tell when somethings not right.
I have saved many many hundreds of chicks by peeling them out when they're stuck, over the years. 88 ducklings in one morning. My water valve was stuck and there was a humidity problem. As long as there's progress I don't touch them. When they are shrink wrapped, I peel them out under a small trickle of warm running water about 80-100 degrees, but careful not to get a drop on the beak. It only takes a drop the drown a chick. I sometimes blow in the face if I think they got wet, but rarely ever had that happen.
I had chicks that were dying in the shell that wouldn't pip. I took the tip of a small knife and pipped the air cell, and they were about 30 or so and all were ready. They showed no signs of blood or veins, so I peeled them out and saved about 80-90% of them. There was many dead in the shells that were fully developed. They just was partly shrink wrapped.
In the past 5 or 6 years or so, I been doing a dry hatch method on my Marans, and find that works best. Flying Mallards also do good with a dry hatch. Some breeds are different. In most cases chicks don't need any help. I only offer help when I know they are in trouble. The way I tell, is if there's no sign of blood or veins, I know they are ready and just peel them out. When there's more then 1 or 2 stuck, it's usually a humidity problem that needs adjusting.
