Help a nervous hatcher

[LynnCircleFarm]

I have a couple peachicks that have pipped but not progressed. It’s only been about 10 hours but I want to be prepared if I need to step in at some point, so what are the signs that assistance may be needed? Beaks are out and they’re chirping but it seems like the beak of one is pretty far out? Are they able to zip if they can’t get their beak back in? Thanks for any advice!

 

[PeaShack]

Hi, I just hatched Spaulding Peachicks for the first time (only chickens and quail prior to that). They are now 16 days old. Four eggs went into lockdown and all 4 hatched. My incubator was set to 99.8 F and 50% humidity before lockdown and 99.5 and 70% for lockdown. I had planned on lockdown for Day 26 but one of the eggs started cheeping on Day 25 (so lockdown started then). On Day 26 morning all eggs externally pipped and they hatched on Day 27. The last egg hatched a full 12 hours from the first (evening of day 27), no issues despite getting rolled around by the others!

It looks like yours are all doing what they should be. Do not intervene (as hard as that is, you can do more harm and kill them if blood vessels still full and yolk hasn’t absorbed). Typically, if they are strong enough to externally pip, they will make it to hatch. Do not open the incubator now as any loss of humidity can cause them to shrink-wrap in their membranes or not have enough moisture to rotate in their egg.

IMO, I would give them the full 24 hours from external pip and then consider intervening.

I am super excited for you! These guys are soooo different from chickens. They love zoomies, start flying really well on day 4 of life, and are complete clowns.

Good luck and post pics..would love to see your babies!

 

[LynnCircleFarm]

Thank you! They are so different from hatching turkeys and chickens so I’m psyching myself out. I also know how social they are so I’m nervous that I only have two hatching and want them both to survive so I don’t end up with a lonely chick! That happened last hatch (a month ago) but luckily I was also incubating guineas so my one peachick lives with them right now. I lost two last time that were fully developed but struggled to hatch so I’m just extra nervous this time around. Appreciate your response!

 

[PeaShack]

Thank you! They are so different from hatching turkeys and chickens so I’m psyching myself out. I also know how social they are so I’m nervous that I only have two hatching and want them both to survive so I don’t end up with a lonely chick! That happened last hatch (a month ago) but luckily I was also incubating guineas so my one peachick lives with them right now. I lost two last time that were fully developed but struggled to hatch so I’m just extra nervous this time around. Appreciate your response!

Understandably nervous! Just in case…there are some great YouTube videos on how to do assisted hatching. The key is if there are any red vessels once you carefully peel back the shell, mist the area, put back in incubator and wait.

I have had 2 successful assisted hatchings (one for Petunia a chicken rooster) and one for a button quail that pipped the wrong end of the egg but was super ready and just needed a tiny bit of help. The others I assisted died. It was so traumatizing I don’t think I’ll assist ever again and let nature take its course.

Prayers and Good luck
Please give updates!