Assisted hatch

[ENGEC35]

I spent the last few hours assisting the hatch of one of my chicks. He was stuck, 48 hours after the first external pip, and he got about an inch unzipped before he got stuck somehow.

I removed little pieces of shell to clear enough away and eventually, after more than 50% of the shell was gone, I left for two hours.

When I came home, he finally freed himself!

However, one stubborn piece of shell is basically glued to the back of his head and It looks like the top of his right wing

So he’s still stuck. Currently on his belly fighting like hell to get the shell off.

What can I do?

Someone mentioned spray misting him with (what?) and letting him free himself easier.

How do I really do this and will It hurt the other eggs that have not pipped yet? Or maybe they have, but it’s not visible.

Day 25 of a delayed hatch, we had high humidity for the first two weeks

 

[paneubert]

One way is to wrap in a very wet paper towel that has very warm water on it. It can loosen the glue/egg from the feathers. Sometimes I have used a cotton swab to drip hot water on specific spots to loosen. Tweezers help a lot as well....

 

[ENGEC35]

One way is to wrap in a very wet paper towel that has very warm water on it. It can loosen the glue/egg from the feathers. Sometimes I have used a cotton swab to drip hot water on specific spots to loosen. Tweezers help a lot as well....

Ok, he pipped 48 hours ago but he’s only exposed from his shell for a few hours now. I’ll have to take him out of the incubator to do this; is there a way to do It without risking giving the chick a chill?

Will the eggshell fall off on its own? And will the “glue” go away?

Currently, his right wing is extended upwards stuck to the right side of his face, right behind his eye.

On the other side of his head, stuck to the back of his head and the left side, is the remainder of the shell.

Thanks for all your help!! I really want to save his chick

 

[007Sean]

What I would do and have done many times is, take it out of the bator, have some warm water going at a faucet and wet my finger, then put a drop of water on the stuck places. Tease the stuck places apart. Do this as quickly as possible. Then return it to the bator or hatcher.

 

[ENGEC35]

What I would do and have done many times is, take it out of the bator, have some warm water going at a faucet and wet my finger, then put a drop of water on the stuck places. Tease the stuck places apart. Do this as quickly as possible. Then return it to the bator or hatcher.

It’s done!

He’s finally free of the shell and completely hatched!

I warmed filtered water in the microwave inside a little medicine cup that holds maybe 15 ml. I used a dropper from a vitam c serum, rinsed, and dropped water on the baby while he was in the incubator, just lifting the lid and dropping water on the areas where he was stuck.

Thank god! 5 minutes later he wriggled himself free!

So we used a lot, prob 2 tbsp of water on him. That ok?

And should we wait 24 hours to take him out of the incubator? Going to set the brooder up in the morning

 

[paneubert]

I would either wait until he dries off by himself before taking him out, or make sure the brooder is plenty warm and there are no drafts to chill him.

 

[Spartan22]

I normally leave them to rest and dry off in the bator overnight, they should be even be fine for 24 hours unless it gets too crowded.