Help!!! Air cell too big!!!

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bex1983 said:
Day 26 on Ancona duck eggs, locked down at day 23/24 because of lots of movement...everything looked normal yesterday but today 2 of my eggs have air cells that cover the entire side of the egg!! One appears to be internally pipped (I think, pics below) but is it going to be able to turn with an air cell so large? These were shipped eggs and they were upright the first week but then the air cells were stable....What do I do at this point?

First 2 photos are one egg, lowest pencil line on first photo is where the air cell was yesterday, trying to show what I think to be the internal pip in the second photo, third photo is second egg....movement at edge of air cell but I don’t believe it is pipped (excuse blurriness, my son took pics while I candled)
Click to expand...

Try not to worry, it looks like the air cell has just drawn down which is part of the hatching process. If you can see an internal pip everything sounds on track.
Air cells drawing down is explained here ~ https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/goose-incubation-hatching-guide-completed.491013/
I know it’s geese but it’s quite generic for waterfowl.
Good luck with your eggs!
 
Miss Lydia said:
Any progress today? @bex1983
Click to expand...
One of the two quit and the other is externally pipped. I have a third that didn’t have any air cell issues that I thought had internally pipped day before yesterday, didn’t notice any external pipping yesterday so made a safe hole last night, today still no external pip but still lots of movement....so who knows. A fourth is moving along as expected, with an external pip at the moment. This is my second hatch ever and my first shipped egg hatch. Never again will I attempt to incubate shipped eggs. If these 3 (out of original 14) make it out they will be the most expensive ducks I will ever own lol.
 
Update: Devastated. The second one with large air cell hatched just fine. The other two died during hatch due to malposition and I just keep thinking I should’ve intervened sooner. I had a grad party to go to and the one had externally pipped last night and had a larger hole same spot this morning and was cheeping and breathing when I left, I planned to chip the shell a little when I got home if there wasn’t any progress, and the other didn’t externally pip but I gave him an air hole late last night, heard cheeping this morning I hadn’t heard before (so thought maybe I had been wrong about previous internal pip) and again planned to open the shell more and check it out if he didn’t pip by the time I got home. The one died with his beak out but he couldn’t turn (I think feet were over the head) the other couldn’t turn to face the shell. If I had just gone with my instincts and helped sooner...I just didn’t want to open the incubator and assist too soon if it wasn’t necessary. Ugh, now I feel absolutely awful and I have a lone hatchling that I am scrambling to find age appropriate mates for who will hopefully accept him/her. This is the most awful experience.
 
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I am so sorry to hear about your experience! I don't have ducks now but have in the past, and they are just the dearest little things! I'm so sorry this has been such a difficult and painful experience for you when it should have been a joy. :hugs
 

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