HELP Is this chick ok or did I assist too early?

[Jay_314]

It is day 25 and I had a chick that had stopped mid-zip for a little over 32 hours. I had saw similar posts related to this and decided to help it finish the zip and hatch. It has stayed sort of curled up for a minute. Does anyone know if this is alright or did I assist it too early/late?

 

[Debbie292d]

I would just leave it in the incubator until it's dry and running around. It should be fine.

Welcome to BYC!

 

[Jay_314]

I would just leave it in the incubator until it's dry and running around. It should be fine.

Welcome to BYC!

Thank you! It seems weaker than most of the others that already hatched, but hopefully it will be ok!

 

[Debbie292d]

Thank you! It seems weaker than most of the others that already hatched, but hopefully it will be ok!

I hatch a lot, and rarely have to assist, but it seems the more I've assisted, the worse off they were, as in weak or splayed legs. I just leave those in the incubator, even after being dry, for usually up to a day. They don't need food/water for their first 72 hours, so it'll be fine, and that extra day of resting would do it a lot of good.

 

[casportpony]

It is day 25 and I had a chick that had stopped mid-zip for a little over 32 hours. I had saw similar posts related to this and decided to help it finish the zip and hatch. It has stayed sort of curled up for a minute. Does anyone know if this is alright or did I assist it too early/late?

Welcome to BYC! When did the others hatch?

 

[Mill Chick]

Thank you! It seems weaker than most of the others that already hatched, but hopefully it will be ok!

It may take a day or two for him to catch up but you should leave him in the incubator till he is dry and if he is still weak you can try giving him a couple drops of warm organic apple juice.

 

[Slothinc]

It may take a day or two for him to catch up but you should leave him in the incubator till he is dry and if he is still weak you can try giving him a couple drops of warm organic apple juice.

Yes to this! Let him rest in the incubator but give some drops of apple juice or electrolytes, I would do it right away. He is going to be extremely weak from being stuck inside the egg for that long. Just be super super careful not to let him aspirate. (Read some threads about this if you haven’t given chicks liquid before.)

I personally help chicks that stop mid zip right away. If they start zipping and aren’t out in an hour, I usually find that they are stuck and cant get themselves out, but otherwise are healthy chicks. So I always note the time that I see them zipping and if they aren’t out in an hour, I help them. It is rare for a chick to zip if they aren’t ready to be out of the egg. Just telling you this as a tip for next time

 

[Jay_314]

Welcome to BYC! When did the others hatch?

Thank you! The others hatched between days 21-23. I have a styrofoam incubator and had problems with the temperature fluctuating from 98-101 degrees for the first few days, so that probably caused the slightly later hatch. I had 6/12 make it counting this one with four infertile eggs and two that quit after lockdown. My rooster is about 5 years old so I’ll probably be looking for a new one soon bc the infertile eggs rate has went up this last hatch or two.

 

[Jay_314]

Yes to this! Let him rest in the incubator but give some drops of apple juice or electrolytes, I would do it right away. He is going to be extremely weak from being stuck inside the egg for that long. Just be super super careful not to let him aspirate. (Read some threads about this if you haven’t given chicks liquid before.)

I personally help chicks that stop mid zip right away. If they start zipping and aren’t out in an hour, I usually find that they are stuck and cant get themselves out, but otherwise are healthy chicks. So I always note the time that I see them zipping and if they aren’t out in an hour, I help them. It is rare for a chick to zip if they aren’t ready to be out of the egg. Just telling you this as a tip for next time

Thanks! I will get try and give him some liquids pretty quick. I haven’t hatched too many times before so I wasn’t sure if he was ready or just needed a break and to finish absorbing nutrients because I kept seeing his beak open and shut, but I will definitely keep that in mind for next time one starts a zip

 

[casportpony]

Those styros are tricky! If this egg was in a cool spot the whole time, that might explain why it went so long, but it was next to others that hatched on time, it should have hatched with them. Helping it 32 hours ago when it got stuck zipping probably would have been okay.