Bunch of eggs, overwhelmed and no clue

[SittinDuck]

Well, a chick poked a hole in one egg. What do I do now?

 

[Pixijayne]

A baby is hatching ?

Or a random passing by chick picked a hole ???

I hope its a baby hatching

If it is you now need to set up a brooder

 

[SittinDuck]

A baby is hatching ?

Or a random passing by chick picked a hole ???

I hope its a baby hatching

If it is you now need to set up a brooder

A chick hatched and is laying there. What's a brooder? How long can it lay in the incubator?

 

[Pixijayne]

A brooder is the nursery ... where chicks live for the first month or so .... how long since it hatched ... they usually like to eat an drink when they can walk about. Though they can go for a few days with nothing to eat or drink but mine always are happy to start as soon as they are walking about. You may need to do some research on what is next ....

 

[Pixijayne]

Do you have a broody you could use as a mum ?
Are any more hatching ?
You kept popping new eggs into the incubator... right ? so you could be having chicks hatch for the next few weeks ?

 

[SittinDuck]

A brooder is the nursery ... where chicks live for the first month or so .... how long since it hatched ... they usually like to eat an drink when they can walk about. Though they can go for a few days with nothing to eat or drink but mine always are happy to start as soon as they are walking about. You may need to do some research on what is next ....

Do you have a broody you could use as a mum ?
Are any more hatching ?
You kept popping new eggs into the incubator... right ? so you could be having chicks hatch for the next few weeks ?

No, I don't have a broody. None are hatching yet, but they might. All the eggs are different ages. This one hatched a couple hours ago.

So now I need another box with a light in it?

 

[Pixijayne]

Yes you need some way to keep the temp constant at the correct level ... now you're dealing with geese right .... I don't know if their temp needs are different .... remember the chick needs to be able to get away from the heat source incase its getting too hot ....

 

[SittinDuck]

Yes you need some way to keep the temp constant at the correct level ... now you're dealing with geese right .... I don't know if their temp needs are different .... remember the chick needs to be able to get away from the heat source incase its getting too hot ....

One site said to keep the temp 90-95 and decrease it 5 degrees every week until it's 70. I noticed at 95 the chick seemed to shiver, so I'm keeping it around 100. It likes sleeping and scooting around and at one point even tried to climb back in its shell.

So far it seems the incubator is the best place to be for the warmth. I doubt a light shining down will keep it as warm, but I'll work on something.

Does it need company? Should I put an stuffed animal or something in with it?

What about food? What should it eat? I have a big bag of poultry pellets I've been feeding the adults.

Is wood chips ok for bedding? Would pine needles be better?

Thanks for the help. I didn't get much sleep last night since it started this at 2am. I was starting to think the whole thing was a waste of time since I had already thrown out 6 or 7 eggs that started rotting. I never expected this and when I first heard the chirping, I was thinking a cat had kittens or a rodent or something was making the noise. That's how likely I thought my success would be lol

 

[Pixijayne]

Not sure if your incubator has much humidity ... is the little one all dry ? As for food again I have never had geese but for my baby chickens I chop up cooked eggs a scrambled egg is good I just beat it and cook it not adding milk and butter. I also add in smalll parrot seed .... chiken chicks like to peck so I sprinkle some about on the groung. Maybe some egg-wash soaked bread... good using the chick as a temp guide. The recommend guide is good to know but watching the chick is best. Yes they need friends ... friends help them keep warm too. A stuffed toy would be better than nothing. The floor cant be smooth ... pine shaving seem popular, an old towle can work too.

 

[Pixijayne]

I know about the no sleep .... when I was hatching out my eggs under a bedside lamp .... I was a wreck .... it was soooo good finally getting them in to an incubator ... for the last 12 hrs ... yeah once I got the bator they hatched. Then I had to make the brooder. I was lucky I had an old hermit crab set up I could pull stuff off ... I used a plastic tote/box, stuck the heat mat/pad from the hermit crabs on it, used a thermostat cutoff power supply thing from the crsbs too ... I'll gind a link to the pics I posted.