Hands on hatching and help

[1234chicken4321]

Hi, I have a pretty wobbly egg, but its day 25! And has been wobbling for 2/3 days. I'm aware 25 is way over and if it wasn't wobbling I'd probably crack it. I cracked a day 24 open and there was a live chick .

I would help if it had pipped but I don't think it has even internally (too dark to candle but to cheeping). Looks like I'll just have to wait but any way I can help?

Temp has been fine, my incubator doesn't have a humidity reading but I followed the instructions and have hatched many times before.

 

[Redhead Rae]

Hi, I have a pretty wobbly egg, but its day 25! And has been wobbling for 2/3 days. I'm aware 25 is way over and if it wasn't wobbling I'd probably crack it. I cracked a day 24 open and there was a live chick .

I would help if it had pipped but I don't think it has even internally (too dark to candle but to cheeping). Looks like I'll just have to wait but any way I can help?

Temp has been fine, my incubator doesn't have a humidity reading but I followed the instructions and have hatched many times before.

If you want you can put in a safety hole. My rule of thumb, if they can't pip externally, they most likely can't survive outside the egg. No chick that I've helped pip came to a good end.

 

[1234chicken4321]

If you want you can put in a safety hole. My rule of thumb, if they can't pip externally, they most likely can't survive outside the egg. No chick that I've helped pip came to a good end.

That's what I thought . I'll wait until Saturday then chip away (no harm trying at that point).
Not sure what happened, never had no hatches! Got it on my head id have at least one chick. The incubator is old so maybe i need a new thermometer.

 

[Redhead Rae]

That's what I thought . I'll wait until Saturday then chip away (no harm trying at that point).
Not sure what happened, never had no hatches! Got it on my head id have at least one chick. The incubator is old so maybe i need a new thermometer.

You probably had temp and/or humidity issues. I re-calibrate my incubators before every hatch.

 

[dearheartshomestead]

PLEASE HELP!!! - I’m not sure what to do! My mama Muscovy seems to have pecked open one of her eggs exposing the inner membrane, but there is no pip. It looked yesterday like the duckling had started to pip the side of the shell, rather than through the air cell. Then today, the shell is pecked open through the air sac and indented where it looked like it had tried to pip, but the inner membrane seems to be intact.I have removed it from mama to an incubator, but I'm not sure what to do when. I read the wonderful article. I’m wondering if it is malpositioned and it did indeed try to pip yesterday unsuccessfully.I feel like I can see it's beak toward the narrower part of the shell not under a wing?There is a dark ring forming around the shell where the air cell is? Thank you so much for any advice! Baby is alive - I can see it moving!

 

[Redhead Rae]

@Pyxis, @WVduckchick

 

[Pyxis]

Those are tricky. What day of incubation is it on? Do you see any area on the shell that looks 'bruised' as though it has tried to pip there? If so, that is where you want to carefully open the egg to find the beak.

 

[dearheartshomestead]

Those are tricky. What day of incubation is it on? Do you see any area on the shell that looks 'bruised' as though it has tried to pip there? If so, that is where you want to carefully open the egg to find the beak.

That's the terrible part - I don't know because this was a clutch that the mama duck laid, and we were just going to let her hatch them. She started to sit the nest with only four eggs in it on April 4th. We were trying to be pretty hands off the nest early on so she could do the turning and adjusting, but when we checked the nest one week later, there were seven eggs! She threw two rotten eggs out one week ago, a duckling hatched on it's own two days ago, and she's still sitting on the last three and they're moving when candled. I'm completely confused and don't know what to think. Even if this egg was laid an entire week after she started sitting the nest, it would still be 35 days old. Here is a pic of the spot that looked like a pip yesterday. It wasn't indented like this until today, which made me think mama may have tried to assist? And here is a pic of the veins now.

 

[Pollmadoll]

For a few months @RubyNala97 and I have talked about having a thread for Hands on Hatchers to come together and for help for those who want to be more involved or don't want to accept the "Never help a chick" theory. People have different methods of hatching, and that's ok. When you find something that works for you, you do it. Don't worry about what other's views are, as long as your method is working- that is what is important. This thread is meant for us hands on people. A place to come together and talk, exchange our "hands on" methods, or seek help in assisting or just to see how our methods really do work for us. We aren't a thread to debate the differences for hands on/hands off, there's a thread for that. We are strictly for people that want to experience hatching in it's entirety w/out being literally yelled at because you are doing it different or because you are being hands on. OH no you opened your incubator at hatch??? That's ok, here we understand and will help anyone who needs it regardless of wether you did something we wouldn't. One of the greatest and most knowledgeable things is candling, and you shouldn't be afraid to do it.

A little about myself: I use an old LG incubator with fan attatchement, and I have awesome hatches. My last was 100%. I prefer a low humidity incubation method, and a high hatch humidity. I am VERY hands on. I open my incubator frequently during hatch and I have NEVER lost a chick that has pipped or started zipping. I seldom have post hatch mortality and my chicks are very healthy with no leg problems. And I am more than willing to assist my chicks if I feel it is neccessary. Why am I saying this? Because these are the things that a lot of hands off hatchers will swear to you will happen if you are not hands off. I respect a hands off hatchers philospohies and that's great for them. But I hate the fact that some would condem and put down those of us that don't share their philosophy. So if you are looking for a place to share your experiences and excitment in being hands on, without the worry of being scolded or threatened you won't be helped in a time of need, feel free to jump in and inroduce yourselves. Tell us a little about your methods and share pics of your flocks and chicks.

I assisted hatched a chick three weeks ago as it’s siblings had hatched with a broody mother four days before and she left her nest to go sunbathing with her three chicks. Luckily I had another broody but she lost interest so I could hear MIRACLE chirping and she/he had pipped so decided to peel her out and fluff her up in the incubator . Then added the chick with the others with the broody. SUCCESS . I have saved quite a few plus a Lady Amherst pheasant Chick struggling with success. Plus hatched a pea chick

 

[PenguPen]

I need to help a chick out but don’t have any coconut oil or bacitracin. Is there anything else I can use besides water?