Emu Hatch-a-long 2012

[Avie]

Now for our third and last egg.......still moving on day 55. Cross your fingers.

How's he/she doing?

As for my not-so-exciting progress report

finally took all the weight numbers for this egg and made a graph. The line is slanted in the right direction. It's still a week away from the earliest possible signs of wiggling.

Gosh I hope I get a wiggler, but in the meantime it has been great looking at all the pictures...babies and grown-ups too. Nice to see such a clear pic of Felicity!

 

[Kiril749]

Well, sadly our third guy didn't make it. I took Rio out of the incubator this morning and I didn't see any movement. I drilled a little hole to see what was going on and there was a full grown chick.......but it was too late. I'm afraid the other two chicks turned the egg over too many time and disoriented him/her. Too bad because the yolk was all absorbed and he/she was ready to go. I keep thinking if I sured up the egg while the other chicks dried off it might have done the trick.......but it was meant to be and we're so grateful for Sydney and Rio......

 

[Grassman 52]

sorry for your loss

 

[Avie]

Sorry to hear about the third chick...

best wishes for the other two. How are they doing? Were they up and about pretty quickly or did it take them awhile to get their legs under them? Is Sydney glad to have a sibling?

 

[Kiril749]

Well Sydney is up and walking just fine. She's even drinking and eating. I had some Sebastopol and Pilgrim Gosling hatch a day after they did so I have them all together. I'm certain the goslings have taught the emu to eat and drink. Rio's legs were weak and would push outward, and I was concerned about splayed leg. So last night I secured them with gauze and duct tape so they would stay aligned. I just took it off and he seems much better. I'm taking them outside for some exercise which should help, but I'm gonna have to keep an eye on that......at any rate it's happy time on the homestead!!!!!

 

[Grassman 52]

Update - 4 healthy chicks as of today - balance as follows:

Day 54 - 3 eggs getting ready to hatch - the 4th has not sounded
Day 47 - 6 eggs still kicking

Had all 4 out in the yard yesterday - the oldest - Pogo was running around but when I whistled he would run right back to my side - The other three could barley walk but they loved being out in the grass and picking around.

It is cool to see how fast they learn to walk and within 24 hours can run real fast - Pogo and I walked completely around the back yard doing laps - his legs look straight and strong.

 

[Kiril749]

Update - 4 healthy chicks as of today - balance as follows:

Day 54 - 3 eggs getting ready to hatch - the 4th has not sounded
Day 47 - 6 eggs still kicking

Had all 4 out in the yard yesterday - the oldest - Pogo was running around but when I whistled he would run right back to my side - The other three could barley walk but they loved being out in the grass and picking around.

It is cool to see how fast they learn to walk and within 24 hours can run real fast - Pogo and I walked completely around the back yard doing laps - his legs look straight and strong. 

I had my little ones out today as well. They're both strong and loved walking around. My German Shepard adopted them as we'll.

 

[Grassman 52]

Just a note from looking at my chicks and having them outside:

The oldest hatched at 56 days and was strong and fit right away

3 hatched between 51-52 days - they are taken a little longer to get to where the oldest chick is - fatter with more yoke - trouble getting the legs under due to the pear shape - better to push the temp down and shout for 54-56 days.

Next time temp will be at 96f - 96.5f all the way through.

First few weeks of incubation I didn't have good air flow - temps were low that's why my first set of eggs hatched at 56 days.
After I corrected the air flow - temps rose a little.

54 days and I have one that just broke through the shell

 

[Kiril749]

I agree Grassman. That seems to be the common opinion. However, my second guy hatched two days after my first and he had trouble with his legs a bit. When he would try to stand his legs just slid out to his sides despite the rug and towel under him, so I wrapped gauze around his legs and secured them about an inch apart with duct tape to keep them aligned under him. I kept that on for about 24 hours and what a difference that made. As soon as I took it off he was fine. Know he's up and walking, although a bit shaky. But he's getting stronger by the minute and is walking great.

 

[Tame Emu Guy]

It would be worthwhile to consider every little thing we know about how the male incubates in the wild, including seeking information from other sources.

Boy Emu's incubation was my one and only experience. I was fascinated by how efficient it all was.

For example, it was a real blast when I first saw a chick 'punch' its way through the 'curtain' of feathers around B.E., and just disappear, and then figure out there is a definite 'room' under the bird.

Supreme Emu