Deformed keet- continually scratching at head?

[AnnaLease]

The last time I hatched guinea eggs under a broody hen, I got a keet that would violently scratch with both feet at it's head and neck around the area of its ear. It would exhaust itself, lay breathing heavily, then continue to scratch and thrash around. Just before we went to kill it, it died in our hands. Now, I have an egg that just hatched in the incubator and the keet looks like it is doing the same thing. Why is this? Is there anything we can do? And what causes this? Help!

 

[PeepsCA]

I have had keets that do that hatch out before... it's like they get stuck in the need to/instinct to get out of the egg/free from the shell mode and they just can't pull out of it. They bicycle in the hatcher (to the point of exhaustion), only scooting around on the floor when they finally connect with something they can push against with their feet, and never actually get up and start running around with the other keets. Some keets occasionally do work their way thru it and figure out how to get themselves upright and then they are fine, but it's rare. Most likely a neurological issue... could be genetic, could be developmental issues caused by the incubator. I'm not sure of the exact cause, but I will normally just cull those keets if it's still going on 6 hrs after hatch... if it is genetic I don't want to pass the issue on to another flock when/if that bird ever breeds.

 

[AnnaLease]

OK, thanks for the info, that makes sense. The first chick I had, hatched at night and I left him all day, then killed him in the evening. This one hatched a few hours ago, and it took a long time to hatch and really struggled to get out, but it seems to be lifting it's head up and looking around, now- yay! I'll keep you updated!