First timer, also with mixed fowl

[Silvester]

This is the beginning of my second year with chickens.

I had three hens laying and one went broody before I was sure of what was going on, so she ended up sitting 12 eggs. The first eggs hatched mid day Sunday and so far 7 chicks have hatched and are scampering about.

I found one egg had been crushed, I'm guessing mid last week by the development of the embryo.

Today I discovered two partially hatched eggs with dead embryos in them and a third that didn't seem to be doing so good. I'm sure I did the wrong thing, but I peeled away the shell and rinsed the chick in warm water. The mother doesn't seem to want to deal with this chick; it's still got closed eyes and has yet to be able to stand (after a hour or so).

I still have one unhatched chicken egg and four duck eggs in with the hen and chicks - the hen seems to be ready to abandon the nest.



Can/should I collect the remaining eggs and the chick I helped out and put them in a Tupperware under a light bulb?
I'd really like to salvage the duck eggs if at all possible and baby critters always give me an "allergy attack".



Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

[donrae]

If you want to try to salvage the eggs, now is the time to take them. If chicks hatched Sunday, momma's ready to get moving!

Can't help you much on what to do for them besides rig an incubator and do some research on what duck eggs need to hatch, humidity and temp wise. When mommas here leave the nest, the unhatched eggs are just tossed.