If baby is alive you should see him chewing and breathing
I would remove the shell from above the beak area then wet the membrane and look for veins. If the veins are gone then you can peel back a bit more above the head
Go slow so you can keep looking for veins
Use coconut oil to wet the membrane it helps see veins really well
Baby could be in wrong position to break out himself
They can take 24-48 after the external pip
I know he didn’t make his own home but I would count from thf hole you made
A very similar situation happened to me in June. After 36 hours the baby became so weak that he couldn’t zip.
He stopped moving, peeping and moving his beak.
I know we are not supposed to intervene, but we are so invested in our ducklings that our instincts tell us we must.
If I were you I’d start assisting immediately.
Wet a q-tip and clear his nostrils and add a tiny bit of warm water inside.
Begin with taking off small pieces of the shell and try to stimulate the baby.
Last year, as I said the same thing happened to me. And he would have definitely died if I waited any longer!
He was born with his yolk sac not absorbed and very weak. He exhausted himself by trying to hatch. He couldn’t lift his head or stand.
I made him a bed, hand fed him, exercised his neck muscles and in one week his yolk sac was completely absorbed and he was getting stronger by the day!
If your baby makes it, God willing, he may need some extra care so be prepared. I will gladly help you.
PLEASE, keep us informed. I’ll be praying he makes it.
Here are some pictures of “Pip”, our miracle baby. You can see his yolk sac and where he gave up trying to hatch..
Blessings,
Amy