Early Hatching Egg & Weak Chick

[Haylie's]

I'm going to preface this with my eggs were never suppose to hatch. My incubator isn't the best. It was an experiment since I live on a farm with someone who has too many eggs and wanted to see if I could hatch some. I never expected to have anything hatch. I don't even know anything about chickens or ducks. Is there anything better I can be doing? Am I even doing anything right? I just feel terrible that I'm not prepared. But please don't try and make me feel worse. This wasn't planned. I'm just trying to save them.

I do have a brooding area set up but I do live in an rv ( 0715171658b.jpg ). The temp has stayed at 104 at one side and 90 on the other. And I have all kinds of photos as attached files. I will be putting coordinating name in parentheses.

That being said out of 12 eggs I have 3 still alive. One is perfectly healthy (0715171701.jpg).

I have another chick who someone on my farm started to open, maybe she had piped but I was at work so I don't know if she had started or if someone had started to open her egg for her, but she's incredibly weak. She looks better than yesterday. She can't stand and her eyes don't open. My main issue is that she has no strength in her neck. But she is drinking when I drop water on her beak, also give her water that has been soaking with her medicated starter feed so she gets some nutrients. (0715171658a.jpg, 0715171658.jpg, 0715171657.jpg)

Lastly, my third egg could be a duck or chicken. Both my ducks and chicks are housed together. I thought it was a dead chick so I had started opening the egg from the airsack side since I heard that you could help late hatchlings like this. But I'm thinking it might be a duck because there was some blood when I was opening the egg. Its on day 25 as of today. I have photos of the egg and thermometer in my incubator. (0715171659a.jpg, 0715171700_HDR.jpg)

 

[Haylie's]

I don't want to retype this whole post but since taking photos of Hope (weak chick out of her shell) she has passed away.

 

[CountryFlock]

Ok, you said the temp range was from 90 to 104? That is very dangerous and I'm surprised you have some surviving eggs. The temp range for hatching should be no more or no less than 97.5 to 100. The humidity should be 75% but 70% is ok. Any humidity below 55% is extremely dangerous. You should never assist hatch a chick unless it absolutely needs it. If a chick pips you should never help it unless it is stuck to the egg shell and can't move.

Give the chick or chicks that hatch some electrolyte water if you can. Duck eggs incubate for 28 days, the chickens 21 days. If you opened the duck egg don't expect it to live too much longer in the egg and do not open it at all.

So if the 3 that are alive are the healthy chick, the weak chick, and the duck then I would focus on the weak chick. Make sure the healthy chick is in the brooder at about 95 degrees. Did you think about humidity during incubation and hatching? Did you turn the eggs?

For the weak chick you would just have to give it some water and hope for the best.

 

[CountryFlock]

Oh, sorry to hear that about the weak chick. Did you turn the eggs during incubation? Did you have humidity above 65% during hatching? The extreme temp during hatching worries me

 

[Haylie's]

Oh I'm sorry the brooder is 104 under the lamp to 90 on the cool side. The incubator was 97 to 104. We had to move it at one point, long story.

I am not sure about the humidity. This was my boyfriends project and now I'm the bleeding heart trying to save the last 2.

 

[CountryFlock]

What is left? The healthy chick and the duck egg?

 

[Haylie's]

What is left? The healthy chick and the duck egg?

Yes. The healthy one is fine. She just likes to talk.

 

[CountryFlock]

Ok, well don't mess with the duck egg I guess. It could be a chicken egg, they could sometimes bleed when not ready to hatch. I would leave it be and check later if it is still alive. I hope the best for your chick.

 

[Leighe]

Are you going to be able to keep these chicks and raise them? I'm slightly confused with "I'm going to preface this with my eggs were never suppose to hatch. My incubator isn't the best. It was an experiment since I live on a farm with someone who has too many eggs and wanted to see if I could hatch some. I never expected to have anything hatch."
If you are able to take care of them and want to raise them then food, water, electrolytes and monitoring the temp they are under is very important. If you are not wanting to raise them, please go to your states site here on BYC and see if someone will take them and raise them. Or even go to your states site here and connect with someone close to you to help you. We can certainly offer help but kinda sounds like you're behind the 8 ball here because you weren't expecting this to happen. I'm so glad you are trying to save them and care for them. As you have already found out, they are fragile.

 

[Haylie's]

Are you going to be able to keep these chicks and raise them? I'm slightly confused with "I'm going to preface this with my eggs were never suppose to hatch. My incubator isn't the best. It was an experiment since I live on a farm with someone who has too many eggs and wanted to see if I could hatch some. I never expected to have anything hatch."
If you are able to take care of them and want to raise them then food, water, electrolytes and monitoring the temp they are under is very important. If you are not wanting to raise them, please go to your states site here on BYC and see if someone will take them and raise them. Or even go to your states site here and connect with someone close to you to help you. We can certainly offer help but kinda sounds like you're behind the 8 ball here because you weren't expecting this to happen. I'm so glad you are trying to save them and care for them. As you have already found out, they are fragile.

They are for the lady whoms farm we live on. She just wanted us to try and see if we could hatch some but now she's not helping with anything but once they're old enough we are going to put them with the rest of the chickens and ducks.