Hands on hatching and help

[Beckid974]

I put 9 bantam eggs on lockdown yesterday morning and noticed last night that one had externally pipped. Got up this morning and no progress on that one and now another has externally pipped. Obviously they are early and I'm not sure how long to give them before I start to try to help. This is my first attempt at hatching. Thanks!

 

[aart]

Obviously they are early and I'm not sure how long to give them before I start to try to help.

At least 24 hours...be patient.
Why do you think you should need to assist?
Most hatches do.not.need any assistance...it can do more harm than good.

Day 19 pips do not mean they are necessarily 'early',
it just means your temps might have been a bit high.

Read these while you wait.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...incubator-thermometers-and-hygrometers.73634/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-beginners-guide-to-incubation.73350/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/incubation-humidity.73386/

 

[Beckid974]

First time jitters lol. I'm not sure that I do need to assist yet, that's why I'm asking. Patience isn't my strong suit sometimes. I just want them to have a healthy hatch.

 

[WVduckchick]

First time jitters lol. I'm not sure that I do need to assist yet, that's why I'm asking. Patience isn't my strong suit sometimes. I just want them to have a healthy hatch.

It can be frustrating. But helping too soon can be disastrous, so try to hang in there. Watch for browning of the membrane or for the chick to struggle. Otherwise, they should be ok on their own.

 

[WVduckchick]

I was on vacation, gone for 6 days, chicks were supposed to be due tomorrow.
Arrived home yesterday with 7 of 11 already hatched! I hadn’t even added water yet. So I pulled those 7 and added some water, and the other 4 hatched yesterday afternoon.

Seramas

 

[Beckid974]

We've got two hatched so far! Still nervous but feeling better about it. One hatched while we were working outside, the other I walked up just at the right moment. Can't wait to see the rest!

 

[Beckid974]

I was on vacation, gone for 6 days, chicks were supposed to be due tomorrow.
Arrived home yesterday with 7 of 11 already hatched! I hadn’t even added water yet. So I pulled those 7 and added some water, and the other 4 hatched yesterday afternoon.

Seramas
View attachment 1825470

They are so cute and seramas are at the top of my breed want list!!!!

 

[Siddlefiddle]

I was just wondering, If I bought shipped eggs, and one had a little crack in it, could it still hatch?

Yes but you should use wax to seal up the crack. If the crack if fairly large it probably won't hatch but there is no harm in trying.

 

[CricketFarm]

Hi all
I have two Muscovy females sitting on what was a nest of 16 that has somehow been reduced to a few. They are locked in at night so I’m not sure how, but my plight is with hatching. One egg hatched three days ago, and the drake got into the pen and we found the duckling dead in the yard. Don’t know if that was on him or not. Next egg was a super robust funky looking little guy third egg was a small duckling that got pushed to the side of the nest and I found him super cold and put him under mama and he’s alive but has splay leg so I will have to pull him out. Two eggs have turned dark. The last two had pipped holes and one got crushed while he was unzipping, And died and not the second has been crushed but the duckling is alive and yawning. I thought duck mamas did this right lol am I having issues because there is two of them? Can I put this crushed egg in the incubator and would I need to help it hatch when it’s done yawning?

 

[bernie131]

If all that is happening and you have a incubator I would put all the "possibles" in there. Being with Mom and dad crushing and possibly killing them would tear me up, not all are good and smart parents. It drives me crazy when Momma has babies and the drakes still wants to mate and the babies get killed.