Help day 30 turkey eggtopsy with a live under developed poult

[ABolt]

So I went in under the advise of a long term turkey breeder at day 30 and carefully opened up all that hadn't hatched , one was alive but we accidentally ruptured the membrane and I was told to just open it up , so I did and of course it passed but it looks like its at least a week off to me. This is my first turkey hatch temp has been steady 99.5 and humidity at 65%. There are three more alive but very with a lot of yolk and fluid to absorb, did I just murder all my poults? Its been 30 going on 31 days , what am I doing wrong and can I save the other 3 ?

 

[WalnutHill]

At this point you can keep them in the hatcher and see if they survive. I cracked one that I thought had failed but it was alive, it had about 1 1/2" of yolk unabsorbed. I left it in what was left of the shell, set upright in an egg carton, and it finished developing and fought its way out. But that one was probably no more than a day and a half from ready to hatch. The more shell left around them, the better. If they survive the sudden exposure to air that their lungs may have not been ready for, they may do okay. Don't keep the humidity too high, 65% is okay if the shells are already broken. The chance of infection is very high at this point.

 

[ABolt]

Is there something I can do better next time to prevent under development? Ive checked my calendar over and over and I know for a fact they are now at day 31 ... If breed matters they are royal palm and red bourbon .... only one is still moving at this point and Im not going to risk opening the incubator, shooting myself in the foot :-(...

 

[WalnutHill]

Rate of development is all about temperature. If your incubator does not have a fan, you were running about a degree low throughout, or had a cool draft below the eggs. My last hatch was at 27 days, and all were healthy and happy. I was experimenting with a hybrid intermittent fan and the temp was perhaps 1/2 degree high.

Success of hatch is highly dependent on humidity, it seems that turkeys do need substantially more humidity at time of hatch to prevent the very thick membrane from trapping the chick. I am, after much trial and error, keeping the humidity relatively low the first three weeks, then raising above 65% for the fourth week, and above 75% at day 26.

All domestic turkeys are the same breed, and different colors develop at the same time. That said, that the chicks develop fully before hatching is far more important than on what day they hatch.

 

[ABolt]

I do wish I found this sight before I asked advice from the gentleman that had me open them up, I feel like a murderer :-(. I lost all of them. But I guess its about trial and error, being my first try ... I will be picking up another dozen royal palms today and will be on this sight religiously
on the upside the one chicken egg I threw in hatched
Out of my white frizzle roo and my banty barred rock hen, I didnt even think it would be fertile as its only her 3rd or 4th egg ever

 

[WalnutHill]

Remember that even if everything went perfectly, you won't have a 100% hatch rate over time. Chalk it up to experience, and be sure to verify your temperatures with a medical thermometer or other calibrated thermometer at the top of the egg.