Duckling Can't Hatch!

[55fingers]

I'll try to get up pictures soon. We have a duckling who externally pipped and then hasn't hatched for at least 24 hours, if not days. We decided it would be best to help it, so today we chipped a tiny bit of the shell off and left it for a while. When it didn't try to hatch anymore, we chipped more off. Still nothing. We eventually chipped a bit off big enough for the baby to come out, but left the membrane because when I tried to pull it away there was lots of blood.

Now it's beak is hanging out, along with some of its body, blood on it, but the membrane is attached to it and I'm worried it will never fully separate, if not die. During the time it has externally pipped, the bottom of the egg has turned dark like it's rotting. I now suspect it's blood. There was also blood in the shell so it's noir just from the membrane. It surely can't stay in there! I have it sitting open with a wet towel wrapped around it to keep it from drying out. What can I do? Do I try to chip it out further? I don't think it will survive the night if it stays in that egg...

 

[Pyxis]

It sounds very much like it hasn't finished absorbing and is not at all ready to hatch. Ducklings can take up to 48 hours from external pip to zip, so it sounds like you've rushed it a bit.

Stop trying to pull the membrane off, that will just make it bleed to death. Coat the membrane in coconut oil or bacitracin so that it does not dry out. Take the wet towel off it because that's likely to chill it. Put it back in the incubator propped up in a cup so that it cannot get out of the egg, because right now I doubt its yolk is absorbed and you don't want it pulling out of the egg with an unabsorbed yolk.

If there is active bleeding from the membrane where you can see, apply styptic powder if you have it or gentle pressure with a dry paper towel to stop the bleeding.

Then just leave it in there. It needs to finish absorbing or it is going to die. Do not remove it from the egg.

Please also post a picture if you can.

 

[Ravynscroft]

X2 what Pyxis said... when veins are opened in the membrane, blood will pool down inside the shell... getting it out now would very likely cause it to bleed out, and that happens quick for a little duckling not ready yet...

Ducklings can take their sweet time hatching, please, just be patient...

 

[55fingers]

Thank you for responding and giving me advice.

See, he had a clutch mate who was hatching and it all looked great but the next morning it was dead. I think it might have dried out. There might be something wrong with how they both developed, this is one reason we chose to chip away at his shell. Another reason was because of this dark spot on the bottom of his egg which we thought was the egg rotting. If it's not the egg rotting, then it's blood, and lots of it, which is not normal. Maybe he developed so that he can't de-attach from the veins? Either way there's something wrong with his egg, but maybe I shouldn't have tried to help him hatch. Everything I read said that if it has been more than 24 hours since the hatching began you should help crack the egg open. I suppose that was wrong, but what's done is done.

Another thing is that he's not trying at all to hatch. I understand he might be absorbing his yoke and the blood, but all he does is peep once in a while and open his beak. I'd think he'd at least shift around sometimes, maybe not though.

Anyway, I can confirm that his egg is no ordinary egg because of the dark spots. What do you think it is? Here's some pictures (sorry for the bad quality. It looks different than it is with these pictures). I've drawn red around the dark spot.

Thank you again for the help!

 

[Pyxis]

Everything I read said that if it has been more than 24 hours since the hatching began you should help crack the egg open.

Unfortunately that's for chicken eggs. Ducklings can take much, much longer to absorb things than chicks do. For future reference, it is fine to open an egg after 24 hours, but only do it over the air cell, and never pull on the membrane. Instead, apply coconut oil or bacitracin to it. It will then become clear and you will be able to see whether there are active veins or not. Active veins mean that the duckling is not ready and it needs to be left alone to finish absorbing.

They don't move much when absorbing. They mostly just move their beaks in yawning or chewing motions. Otherwise, they stay still.

I can't really make out what's going on in the pictures since they're kind of blurry (I know it's hard to hold an egg in one hand and take pictures with the other, could you maybe get pictures with it sitting in the incubator?) but the dark spots look like bruising, which would be bleeding. He may have nicked a vein while he was internally pipping. That happens, and as long as they don't bleed to death from it, they usually are fine on their own after it happens.

Sorry you lost your other one Hopefully this one pulls through. It just needs more time to finish getting everything absorbed.

 

[55fingers]

Alright, thank you for your help! Unfortunately I won't be able to get another picture up until tomorrow, so I hope he lasts that long. I didn't know that was only for chicken eggs, thank you for clarifying. I will apply coconut oil as soon as possible and leave him alone to absorb. Currently he has another clutch buddy who hatched today snuggling with him and peeping encouragement to him. I will be careful not to make this mistake in the future. I will update tomorrow. Thank you again!

 

[55fingers]

He survived the night! Sadly, the other two externally pipped eggs with him died last night. I applied coconut oil last night as well. The veins look red and the membrane around it is brown-ish I think. There is some white membrane as well. Are the active veins red? Also, it seems to be drying up a lot, so I put the cloth back on him. I understand it might make him cold, though, so I might take it off again. Currently he is not in an incubator, but he has a heat lamp. I don't know what more I can do for him apart from apply coconut oil regularly and pray. His clutch mate seems eager to have him out. I don't think he likes being alone. I got more pictures in the daylight, but they really aren't any better than the other ones. My camera really just sucks, sorry.

 

[Pyxis]

He needs to be in an incubator or he is going to dry out. Can you put him back in the incubator? And make sure the humidity is very high?

Unfortunately I still can't really make out much in the close up pictures, do you think you might be able to get some that are better focused? Is he still making yawning/chewing motions?

As to why your others died, can you tell me what the temperature and humidity are in your incubator?

 

[55fingers]

Currently the incubator he was in isn't available for me to use right now. I'll try and see what I can do, though. I'll try to get better pictures with a different camera as well, but I don't know if it will work.

 

[55fingers]

He hatched on Tuesday! I didn't think he was going to make it, but I put him in a makeshift incubator and made sure it was humidified, as well as applying coconut oil regularly, and now here he is! We named him Coconut after the coconut oil which currently still clings to his head feathers. Thanks for all the help!