I had 14 eggs that mama was sitting on, Mon chick #1 hatched, doing just fine, but the next 2 days I had 2 more hatch both died after getting out of the shell. both have "splits " in their bellies, where you can see the insides. What is going on? Surely this can't be normal, what about the rest of the eggs. Is there anything I need to, or can do? I have several different hens, a RIR, Doms, Orpingtions and Black Australorps, so there is no telling who laid what eggs. Ruth just decided to set on them. The first 4 should be finished hatching tonight , and the rest are on day 18.
I am so sorry to hear about your babies. I am a newbie to chickies so i can't help you but wanted you to know someone cares.
Is their belly split or is the yolk sac and so on not asorbed into the abdomen? Either way, it could be caused by genetics or an inexperienced hen, or too many eggs, so the eggs got chilled. Being 2 days late makes me think unasorbed yolks and intestines due to chilling.
Ok the first one looked like it had a yolk on its tummy. The second one had just a small hole but in the same area of its belly. The second was was still very damp, it had not been hatched out very long. I picked it up and it was not moving, eyes closed and such, I held it for several minutes hoping to revive it, but was no use. Mama is doing fine, at least not pecking at me when I go to check on her, and I got the hold the baby this evening. He/ she is so pretty, black with a yellow stripe down its head. Hopefully the other 12 will hatch out successfully.
Is this the first time this hen has hatched eggs? From reading your posts I am leaning towards to many eggs to keep covered completely 3 hatched & 12 more to go = 15 Sounds like a lot to try to cover. Chilled eggs is a possibility. Did you give her all these eggs on the same day?? If not you could run into more trouble.. Either the hen will not get up to tend the nest hatchlings staying on the eggs and not taking the chicks to food & Water. OR she will get up in a few days to take care of the chicks and abondon the other eggs??? Also I was wondering if all the 12 eggs left are good/developing eggs? Did you candle them at any point in the last two weeks?? To toss the bad ones.
Ruth is not quite a year old so this is her first time setting. I started her with just 4 eggs, ( she had been just sitting in the nest box, no eggs at all for 3 days) 4 days later, she is setting in a different box, and some of the other girls laid more eggs in with the first 4. Now I have 14 and no idea which are fresh and which were being sat on. I decided to give Ruth a special nest box, 55 gal plastic barrel with a hole cut out of it. She was doing fine with the first chick, until today. I came home and checked on them and she and the chick are both out in the coop and the 12 eggs are cold. I brought them into the house and put them on the heating pad while the bator warmed up, when it hit 91 I went ahead and put the eggs in, I did leave out the turner. I plan on candling the eggs tonight. Temps were in the high 60's today, and I have no idea how long she was off the nest, so is there any hope for these ? I did go back out and check on the chick and he is doing just fine. I got food and water out tonight, so he figured out how to eat and drink. One more question... if I do get lucky and have any chicks hatch and live, can I put them out with this first one? Will Ruth realize she now has more than one chick? Thanks for the help.
I have had a mother duck abandon her nest, went out that night and candled out of curiosity (it was 40 degrees out and the eggs were COLD) so I was shocked when I saw movement in the eggs! Put them in the incubator and 3 out of 4 hatched. Don't wait too long to candle the rest, as long as she was sitting, some of the eggs could be rotten and you DON'T want them to explode in the incubator! And I would handle them VERY gently when you go to candle them. If the insides look dark and runny, handle it like it's a bomb, it doesn't take much for them to explode and it's not fun when you are holding it at the time. As far as if she would take the rest, you can always try and watch her closely to see how she reacts. If she acts aggressive toward them, take them away.