Help! Chick Pipped Through Shell, But Hen Crushed Side of Egg

[Mother of Raptors]

This morning around ten I saw one of my chicken eggs had pipped. Two other eggs had needed help out of their shell (it was past 22 hours with no further progress compared to other eggs which hatched under 6 hours after pipping). Since I wasn't sure when this chick had pipped, I pulled back the shell around the pip spot and saw dry white membrane but no beak, so I decided to get an air hole started and stopped a few cms when I saw the beak. Some of the feathers looked dry so I also started a tiny zip line thinking maybe it had pipped longer than just a few hours ago (a big mistake!). I then covered the egg in a moist paper towel and placed back under my hen. When I went back to check on the other hatched chicks I found the egg had gotten stepped on! I cleared the broken shell away and saw what I assumed is the egg yolk smashed. I waited six more hours (after removing the egg and placing under a heat lamp with thermometer and moisting with Q tip every 10 minutes or so) and assumed it was near the 9 hour mark since I had first noticed it pipped and added maybe 2 hours before I noticed so it could have been 12 hours. I removed the shell back on the zip line just around the head and struck a vein! It bleed and I immediately covered it back up with a moist paper towel and dry towel and kept light pressure until the bleeding has slowed down. That was four hours ago and I've decided the safest way is to check that the membrane that is exposed is kept moist every two hours and then try assisted hatching when its at the 22 hour mark. It probably hasn't absorbed much yolk before it was broken and I am wondering if the veins will be able to be absorbed? I know the outlook is not in this chick's favor but its my fault it got stepped on so I want to do the best I can for it. If anyone has any advice I would be very grateful for it! Thank you!

 

[RubyNala97]

How is the egg doing now? Is the chick still alive? Just FYI you can use a lubricant like bacitracin or coconut oil or even Vaseline on the membrane to keep it moist. This works much better then water and doesn’t need to be applied as often.

 

[Mother of Raptors]

How is the egg doing now? Is the chick still alive? Just FYI you can use a lubricant like bacitracin or coconut oil or even Vaseline on the membrane to keep it moist. This works much better then water and doesn’t need to be applied as often.

Thank you, I'll remember that in case there's a next time! I finished hatching her out after the 24 hour mark and found that the yolk had not been crushed but was the white strip by the head instead. The chick is fine and will be back with her mother hen and siblings too as soon as the little umbilical area is dried.

 

[NoFlyBackFarm]

That's good!!! Now I'll know what to od if it happens to me again.

 

[HappyDancin']

Oh good! Wow...so glad she didn't bleed out, get crushed by mom, shrink wrap, etc etc...lucky little one! And wonderful job on your part!