chucksmom
Hatching
- Aug 16, 2023
- 1
- 0
- 7
Hi! Long time learner, first time poster. Our female Muscovy, Molly, has been sitting on what we assume to be mule/hinny eggs (dad is likely either a Pekin or Blue Swedish - we do have one male Muscovy though he is only interested in his mama 
).
This is her second set this year. First clutch produced only one fertile egg out of 10 total. She sat great, but baby did not survive; we were away at the time of hatch, so unsure if something went wrong during hatching or after.
She laid a second set of 15 in July, which are due to hatch somewhere between 8/21 (32ish days) & 8/24 (35ish days). I candled the entire clutch over the course of the last few days, & only 3 were alive & well. I marked these so as not to have to disturb her moving forward. Today, I went to check on her & noticed blood in her nest, as well as on her beak. Unfortunately, it appears she hatched one of the babies herself, which did not survive & appeared to have trauma to the body (feathers pulled, bite mark on beak, blood vessels ripped from shell). I'm unsure if me disturbing her nest may have caused this (she is a very friendly girl), or if she grew impatient, or just because she'll be a first time mom.
Regardless, I've pulled the two remaining live eggs & plan to incubate them to ensure they hatch successfully. This is where I need some help. I've never incubated before! We are fortunate to be able to borrow an incubator, but aside from that, I have no idea what I'm doing until they're out.
Currently, they are at Day 27, both are moving & grooving great inside their shells & appear to be close to running out of space.
Any & all advice is IMMENSELEY appreciated!!
). This is her second set this year. First clutch produced only one fertile egg out of 10 total. She sat great, but baby did not survive; we were away at the time of hatch, so unsure if something went wrong during hatching or after.
She laid a second set of 15 in July, which are due to hatch somewhere between 8/21 (32ish days) & 8/24 (35ish days). I candled the entire clutch over the course of the last few days, & only 3 were alive & well. I marked these so as not to have to disturb her moving forward. Today, I went to check on her & noticed blood in her nest, as well as on her beak. Unfortunately, it appears she hatched one of the babies herself, which did not survive & appeared to have trauma to the body (feathers pulled, bite mark on beak, blood vessels ripped from shell). I'm unsure if me disturbing her nest may have caused this (she is a very friendly girl), or if she grew impatient, or just because she'll be a first time mom.
Regardless, I've pulled the two remaining live eggs & plan to incubate them to ensure they hatch successfully. This is where I need some help. I've never incubated before! We are fortunate to be able to borrow an incubator, but aside from that, I have no idea what I'm doing until they're out.
Currently, they are at Day 27, both are moving & grooving great inside their shells & appear to be close to running out of space.
- Any input as to temp, humidity, anything else I may need to do or be prepared for in regards to incubation.
- I'm also looking for input regarding "pipping" & "zipping" - I've read a ton on both, but have never experienced it personally, thus I'm unsure exactly what to be looking for.
- Lastly, if it becomes necessary - when do I intervene during hatch? I've seen a lot of comments stating after 48 hours of "internal pip", which I believe is the beak cresting into the air sac, but again, not 100% clear on this.
Any & all advice is IMMENSELEY appreciated!!
