Assisted hatch experts: I have a question the file didn’t answer.

[as110]

I have an egg pipped yesterday morning. It is a malposition situation. The file says assist after 12 hours. We are passed the 24 hr mark with no progress. I left it hoping it would hatch by this morning. I knew last night the chick inside was moving so alive, but I have not heard any sound since it pipped. I would have started opening the shell but there is a new pip in another egg beside this one.

The second one could also be a malposition, but I will wait to see if it can hatch on its own. It’s too soon to tell.

However the first one needs help. The dilemma is do I help the first one and let the second one develop issues with dry membrane, or leave both in there and let the first one die from shrink wrapping?

I have not been able to raise the humidity above 66. There is so much water in the bottom that it leaks and there is a puddle underneath. I can’t add any more water.

How long can a chick be in a wrap before it dies?

What should I do next?

 

[sylviethecochin]

Twelve hours? I usually leave them go for twenty-four. So that's not bad.

I'm not sure about your question: are you assuming that opening the incubator lid will let out all of the humidity and harden the membrane on egg #2? It won't, if you just open and scoop. And 66% is a perfectly acceptable lockdown humidity, IMO.

If the chick does shrinkwrap, all you have to do is moisten the membrane with some oil. Lockdown is highly overemphasised.

 

[Pyxis]

Twelve hours? I usually leave them go for twenty-four. So that's not bad.

I'm not sure about your question: are you assuming that opening the incubator lid will let out all of the humidity and harden the membrane on egg #2? It won't, if you just open and scoop. And 66% is a perfectly acceptable lockdown humidity, IMO.

If the chick does shrinkwrap, all you have to do is moisten the membrane with some oil. Lockdown is highly overemphasised.

X2!

Also, what file are you referring to that says to help after 12 hours? That's very early IMO. This is the method I use:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/

 

[as110]

Twelve hours? I usually leave them go for twenty-four. So that's not bad.

I'm not sure about your question: are you assuming that opening the incubator lid will let out all of the humidity and harden the membrane on egg #2? It won't, if you just open and scoop. And 66% is a perfectly acceptable lockdown humidity, IMO.

If the chick does shrinkwrap, all you have to do is moisten the membrane with some oil. Lockdown is highly overemphasised.

Yes that is what I worry about. The humidity drop would dry the second chick too.

In the file it says to assist a malpositioned chick after 12 hours. It pipped the small end and definitely malpositioned but the beak is in the hole so it is breathing. Or was when I looked last night. I can’t see it from outside through the plastic. There are too many distortions. I assumed it is 12 hours from the pip.
I left it in there for 24 hours. Should I start counting the 12 hours from here on like for a normally positioned chick?
That would be enough time to see what the next one will do.

Also there is a third egg that should pip today. They are from the same batch.

 

[as110]

X2!

Also, what file are you referring to that says to help after 12 hours? That's very early IMO. This is the method I use:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/

This one. I read it 15 times over the past few years. I read it every time I have a weird hatch. Idk for whatever reason every hatch feels different lol. I don’t know if the 12 hr is counted from the pip or from the first 24 hrs passed With no progress.

 

[Pekin747]

I have an egg pipped yesterday morning. It is a malposition situation. The file says assist after 12 hours. We are passed the 24 hr mark with no progress. I left it hoping it would hatch by this morning. I knew last night the chick inside was moving so alive, but I have not heard any sound since it pipped. I would have started opening the shell but there is a new pip in another egg beside this one.

The second one could also be a malposition, but I will wait to see if it can hatch on its own. It’s too soon to tell.

However the first one needs help. The dilemma is do I help the first one and let the second one develop issues with dry membrane, or leave both in there and let the first one die from shrink wrapping?

I have not been able to raise the humidity above 66. There is so much water in the bottom that it leaks and there is a puddle underneath. I can’t add any more water.

How long can a chick be in a wrap before it dies?

What should I do next?

Empty a small bit of water get a can that does the really light spray if u know what I mean put water into it not to warm but also not to cold and just put a wee bit of spray over them every hour or so is what I'd try but dont know if it would be successful or not as I've never had this problem before

 

[sylviethecochin]

Empty a small bit of water get a can that does the really light spray if u know what I mean put water into it not to warm but also not to cold and just put a wee bit of spray over them every hour or so is what I'd try but dont know if it would be successful or not as I've never had this problem before

No that'll cool the eggs, and the evaporating water can actually dehydrate them.

 

[Pyxis]

This one. I read it 15 times over the past few years. I read it every time I have a weird hatch. Idk for whatever reason every hatch feels different lol. I don’t know if the 12 hr is counted from the pip or from the first 24 hrs passed With no progress.

I actually wrote that one and don't know where I said 12 hours because that's much too short I guess I'm gonna have to comb through and see where I wrote that and fix it.

When they pip in the small end, you actually need to allow up to 48 hours before assisting, because they never got to internally pip.

 

[sylviethecochin]

Yes that is what I worry about. The humidity drop would dry the second chick too.

In the file it says to assist a malpositioned chick after 12 hours. It pipped the small end and definitely malpositioned but the beak is in the hole so it is breathing. Or was when I looked last night. I can’t see it from outside through the plastic. There are too many distortions. I assumed it is 12 hours from the pip.
I left it in there for 24 hours. Should I start counting the 12 hours from here on like for a normally positioned chick?
That would be enough time to see what the next one will do.

Also there is a third egg that should pip today. They are from the same batch.

The chick has been pipped for 24 hours? If so, reach in, remove the egg, and close the incubator. Your humidity won't all escape at once. Peel back a little bit of the shell and look for red. If there is some, return the egg; he's not ready to hatch. If there is no red, then follow the guidelines in Pyxis' hatching guide.

 

[as110]

Empty a small bit of water get a can that does the really light spray if u know what I mean put water into it not to warm but also not to cold and just put a wee bit of spray over them every hour or so is what I'd try but dont know if it would be successful or not as I've never had this problem before

The issue is opening the incubator. If I could open it I would just go ahead with the assist on the first one and wet the second obe, not worry abour the humidity.

At this point I have not opened the lid.