Help! Air cell’s too small but duckling’s still Alive trying to pip!

[WVduckchick]

View attachment 3033640

Yay!!
Congrats!!

May I make one more suggestion? Do you have any rubber shelf liner you could put over that grate on the floor? Those big squares scare me.

 

[BelovedBirds]

Ok I’ll do that! I’m a bit concerned about it’s shell right now, it came out in one swoop and didn’t have the shell attached with the umbilical cord. The duckling can’t seem to straighten itself out off the side either, just flailing around View attachment 3034616View attachment 3034617

some veins still left... Hmm... Is the yolk all absorbed, how does his tummy look?
Don't worry about being curled up still, sometimes it takes a little bit to straighten out.
Go ahead and take the other out, as quick as possible so the other doesnt get cold

 

[BelovedBirds]

What does an unclosed stomach look like? I saw a small hole and I thought it was where it poops from. And thank you! I’m m finally a proud mum of two, and hopefully everything goes well and I can relax! And I will send a picture of the both of them !

Yes, that is the navel slightly open I think, I'd say he's only just absorbed the yolk and it hasn't closed completely. Keep him on a dry soft surface, like paper towels, or perhaps even a puppy pad, it should close up soon, hopefully @WVduckchick can make some suggestions if I'm missing anything. But for now keep him on something soft, in the incubator

 

[BelovedBirds]

I haven’t seen a baby yet, but I finally see an empty shell with my momma duck! So we will have some the same age!
View attachment 3034804

Gosh! Everyone is having ducklings, and mine are all grown up now, makes me want more
Congrats on your hatchlings- I hope mama and babies do well!!

 

[New duck mommy 2021]

Gosh! Everyone is having ducklings, and mine are all grown up now, makes me want more
Congrats on your hatchlings- I hope mama and babies do well!!

Right !! My boys have even got their drake feather now.
We have full on teens lol
I will have babies next week for a day or two till they go to their new home.
The kindergarten class is incubating and hatching them then I’ll take them home for a short time till they go to the new farm

 

[WVduckchick]

An update! The other egg that was put in three days later has externally pipped! But their sibling egg also died, it’s so weird how this is all playing out. Now the issue is does that mean the first egg that was there earlier is falling behind?

I’m so sorry that one was dead. From looking at the first pic, I suspected as much, but was trying to be hopeful. I also suspect it died a few days ago, so I don’t think you caused it.

Congrats on an external pip though!

Calls can definitely be a challenge. The biggest challenge is finding that fine line of when to intervene and when to wait.

Question though, do you own the parents? Are they show quality or pet quality birds?

 

[Croissant]

Show quality calls are even more of a challenge! In addition to the smaller bills and shorter necks, the offspring are also known to not be quite as hardy and healthy. I don’t know why, possibly more inbreeding to achieve a desired “look”.

I have about 50 beautiful calls. Some are quite small and round, but most have longer bills than the “show people” desire. But they hatch much easier on their own (I assist probably less than 50% now).

Whereabouts are you located? Can you get a picture of the egg with the latest pip?

I’m in the Uk and yes I’ll send it through - this is the latest one: the one that cracked before is the same except from an addition smaller crack to the right and left. She’s peeping a lot right now

 

[Croissant]

This is the duckling right now - I made a small crack and left it like that., popped it back into the incubator

 

[shawluvsbirds]

Helping before day 28....mmm.

Calls hatch earlier than other duck eggs. Usually 26 days instead of 28.
However, it can take a whole day or more for them to finish hatching.

 

[WVduckchick]

This one looks good to me.
If it hasn’t progressed any more on its own yet, I would chip off the small area of shell that I have marked with a blue line, only as much of the area that is NOT attached to inner membrane, covering the ducklings head. Carefully moisten the membrane under there and see how it looks.