HELP, Black Swan Hatching in Incubator!!

[bdfive]

I'm trying to stay calm but not easy. I've helped peachicks out of shells but have never hatched Swan or Goose eggs. I have 2 Black Swan eggs that were well into the air sac Sunday when I put them in the hatcher. Yesterday I heard chirps so decided to candled. I'd been told to at least make a little hole since they'd been in the air sac so long using up that oxygen. I did so and could see a beak up against the hole so made it a little larger then left it alone. That little creature wants out so bad if it were a peachick it would be time to help it out without any issues so took a little more shell off and saw veins wtih blood. Stopped. I might add I can't peal the shell away easily. Its THICK & HARD. Don't see how a chick could break through it. I used tweezers to break a little piece away at a time. Hole now is probably the size of a quarter and membrane and edge of membrane is vein free but when I put a q-tip up under it there is a dark gunk. Is that normal or is it blood mixing with normal gunk? A peachick would be drying out and I'd be struggling to keep the membrane from drying and sticking to the chick. This is so different then my expertise. The chick has now put a foot up against the hole next to it's beak. I only know to leave it alone because of the dark gunk but is that something normal with a hatching swan? The chick in the other egg has moved it's beak to the tiny tiny hole. PLEASE HELP!!! Thanks much.

 

[blueraven]

I would put lots of water in the incubator with a wet rage it will bring the moisture up to soften the shell i would also take some luke warm water and wet your finger and dab some water on the drying membrane to look for bloodvessels and help sofften up the membrane.

 

[bdfive]

Thanks Blueraven, I copied and pasted a reply to a private message I received on this forum. Please read below. LOL, it's so embarrassing to ask for help and get no responses so your post is very much appreciated as is the private message. I might add that 1 of the Egyptian Goose eggs has hatched all on it's own. Another has pipped. Hopefully a few more will hatch. Wondering if I can put the black swan and goose chicks together in a brooder. What would be your thought? I've only hatched and raised peafowl.

__________________

Thank you so much for the reply. I've been stumbling through all this but have had some local help that have hatched geese. I'm so happy to say the 2 baby swans (cygnets) are almost free of their shell. I checked them a couple hours ago and became totally frantic seeing some of the membrane stuck hard to the chicks. One I've been breaking back the shell slowly and wetting but other just had tiny hole. All the time I've been working with them they've been peeping like crazy. Looked in the hole with flashlight and saw membrane white in color and sucking up against the chick so broke back egg shell carefully and wet it all well. Also added wet sponges. They are just about past the danger point.

Hatching Swan eggs is a lot different then peafowl eggs, LOL!!! It does take them a lot longer to pip once in the air sac then longer to break through. Maybe I could have left them alone and they would have made it out on their own but have lost peachicks hearing them peep and not helping. These eggs are pretty hard and thick. I hadn't been spraying them with water throughout incubation which could have been a reason they would not be able to make it out on their own. Hopefully they are absorbing all their egg yolk and rest of hatch will go well. I can't tell you how relieved I am to be at this point. Was told and read they are next to impossible to hatch. I feel blessed. We have 5 acres but no pond. Not sure if a very large stock tank would suffice and seems a shame to pen them but it sure would be fun to hatch future swan eggs. The folks that passed these on to me had been trying to hatch them with no success. I offered to help, they accepted. I believe I was told I could keep these and they would take the next clutch hatched. I may keep these while young and pass them back to them when older. Haven't decided.

 

[blueraven]

your welcome glad to help. thats awesome that the the other goose made it so far. let me know how the swans are when and if they make it. i have never got a swan egg before but i would love to have some swans. as long as they have oxygen while in the egg they should be okay and watch if they start turning in the egg thats when its close for them to get out. and i think your doing the right thing at least making the air hole was what you want to do. I have learned from hatching duck and goose though i still need to master geese hatching as they are very sensitive to bacterias in incubators and i have only had a good hatch in a brandnew incubator. i need to get one thats better cleaning i have used Styrofoam. but when it comes to having to help a baby in the egg i have learned that as soon as i start hearing a voice it means the bird is breathing useing up the air in the aircell as you have also learned with your peachicks. so a few times i have just cracked a air hole inside the aircell. and then just brought up the humitity with a wet rag on the floor of the incubator. then its ussually another 24 hours before they start to break out but i am sure its more for swans. then if the egg is soft enough they start to circle around making cuts around the shell. if they cant do this i peel back the shell just the shell up to where the aircell ends and constantly wetting the membrane with my finger our sponge checking for live blood vessels if you see a blood vessel stop and place back in the incubator and check in a few hours. do the same thing once you see the blood vessels have dried up the chick should start to push its way out on its own.


as for brooding i think they should be good its better to have them in a group as they learn where water and food is faster.

how are peachicks for hatching are they hard or easy i find ducks easy to hatch but i have only been hatching so far ducks and geese and once i hatched turkeys and they were even shipped eggs and i got 3 to hatch. but my stupid evil cat got into my shack were i keep young and ate them i was sooo mad. I have canada geese ,domestics, and white fronted but they wont start laying eggs for 2 years yet but i hope to get some babies out of them.

 

[bdfive]

I've helped probably several peachicks out over the years. Was of course scared to death the first few times but so easy now. I'm going to start trying to hatch in the hova bators. My problem is having eggs incubating when some need to go in the hatch drawer in bottom of GQF Sportsman's cabinet. Raising the humidity for hatching has drowned some in the shell incubating. Can't say peafowl eggs are difficult but I've been doing it so long it's become like breathing. They hatch in about 28 days.

I hope I get some more swan eggs. The 6 in the incubator have been there 10 days and still see nothing growing so believe they aren't fertile. I'm sure I'll be leaving them in there way past it making sense hoping for a miracle, LOL!!! I feel so very bad this cygnet doesn't have a swan companion. There are 4 Egyptian Geese with it that's the same age. I don't want to keep the geese but may have to.......or at least 1. I stressed a lot regarding pinioning them but most I talked to felt it was best so an experienced friend did it for me today. There was no bleeding at all. Hope they make it ok through the night. I'll get little sleep checking on them I'm sure.

I've been fortunate that my cats or dogs haven't nabbed a peachick. The dogs don't bother the grown peafowl but I don't trust them around the chicks. I honestly believe I'm going to just stick with peafowl. I don't have facilities for waterfowl. Not sure what I'll do with the Swan but intend to keep it for now.

 

[blueraven]

Would you sell the swan or Egyptian geese I would be interested I could trade also.

 

[bdfive]

Not sure what I'm going to do. Was hoping to get at least 1 more swan so this one will have a companion. Have 6 eggs in the incubator but it's day 11 and no growth so assume not fertile. I don't like keeping one goose so may keep 2 with the swan for now. I could never put them in a box and ship. I'd be frightened to death for them, LOL!!! The peachicks I sell have to be picked up here. I'm thinking I'd like to keep the swan for awhile anyway but had no intentions on keeping the geese. Have wondered if it could be with Silkie chicks. Have a friend that would let me keep a couple and I'd eventually return them. Some say chickens carry diseases that don't bother them but can kill peafowl. Wonder if that applies to swans.

Where are you located? I'm north of San Antonio about 30 miles.

 

[blueraven]

yeah it would be nice if you got another swan but at the same time you could keep a goose with the swan as a friend for it a bird will be happy as long as its with some type of bird simular to it. I wouldnt ship them either until they were fully feathered. I am shipping out my pair of swan geese this monday to pa. but they are fullygrown. I do live in WI would you ship them when they are older and can make the trip? so kinda sucks my family only drives down there once a year to visit my sister. as for the chickens i would indeed be carefull chickens and turkeys carry alot more diseases then chickens and they can transfer it to your peafowl. most people who sell chickens out of state borders need to be npip certified. I took a class last year so i can test for the disease in birds. just a drip of blood is sampled from the birds wing vein and mixed with a blue antigen and by the look of the mixed blood says negative or positive. as long as your bird is neg its alright to join anyflock. most smally hobby farms dont worry about this as its very slim chance of this bird having the actual disease. but waterfowl cant get it for some reason i was told by our teacher but they still have to be tested to go to fairs so i got some antigen.

 

[luvswans]

How neat! I'm hoping you will keep us updated, I have 2 mute swans and just love them.

 

[bdfive]

Cygnet and 4 Egyptian Geese doing fine. Geese are growing faster then the swan. These aren't very layed back calm geese....remind me of guineas...wired with energy. I was wondering if maybe I should get a Sebastopol goose to keep with the swam but it's probably already bonded with the Egyptians. I have a friend that's just hatched Sebastopols. My mind is spinning as to how I can keep the swan. Would need to sell some peafowl to free up an aviary and come up with pool plan. Not sure I want to do all that.

Please.....don't anyone yell at me. I did get them pinioned by a friend that breeds all kinds of birds. Figured them being raised by humans wouldn't qualify them to fly off and know how to live in the wild. It seemed the thing to do and believe it's required in most states. Read Swans live about 10 years if free but 30 if captive and cared for properly.

I've ordered Mazuri feed for it and was told to give it Purina Flock Raiser until other comes in.