Help! My ducklings are late hatching!

[purplesquirrel]

I've only just read these posts...
I read so many things on eggs and the biology and the structure for hours and hours.
Eventually, I took one of the eggs (which, when candled, has a small portion of the membrane missing) thinking, if something goes wrong, it was best to choose the slightly odd one.

I made a small hole in the air pocket, to discover that the membrane was totally white and leathery and very tough!
I pierced through it, to see that they hadn't even internally pipped. The membrane wall to the air sock was so thick and tough!

Using a pair of tweezers I've torn a small hole in the air pocket wall, making sure not to tear the inner membrane which still contains some small 'working' blood vessels.
I can see the ducklings down feathers and they're all wriggling about. So now all the have to do is pierce through the soft inner membrane when they're ready and pip the rest of the shell off.

This is my first time doing this but my incubator obviously was rubbish at generating enough moisture, even with me using a pipette with water every day.

I think I did the right thing, the membrane was so tough I had trouble with my tweezers.
No ones bleeding or seems distressed, I'm going to leave them to it now.

Do you think I've done alright? It's been a nerve racking day!

 

[Miss Lydia]

I've only just read these posts...
I read so many things on eggs and the biology and the structure for hours and hours.
Eventually, I took one of the eggs (which, when candled, has a small portion of the membrane missing) thinking, if something goes wrong, it was best to choose the slightly odd one.

I made a small hole in the air pocket, to discover that the membrane was totally white and leathery and very tough!
I pierced through it, to see that they hadn't even internally pipped. The membrane wall to the air sock was so thick and tough!

Using a pair of tweezers I've torn a small hole in the air pocket wall, making sure not to tear the inner membrane which still contains some small 'working' blood vessels.
I can see the ducklings down feathers and they're all wriggling about. So now all the have to do is pierce through the soft inner membrane when they're ready and pip the rest of the shell off.

This is my first time doing this but my incubator obviously was rubbish at generating enough moisture, even with me using a pipette with water every day.

I think I did the right thing, the membrane was so tough I had trouble with my tweezers.
No ones bleeding or seems distressed, I'm going to leave them to it now.

Do you think I've done alright? It's been a nerve racking day!

I have sent your thread to lacrystol, hopefully she'll be on in a bit she always has good info for those hatching. Hang in there.

 

[Lacrystol]

STOP, if they can take 31 days why are you helping them?

Lets start from the beginning. What is your temp at? What is your Humidity at?

 

[Lacrystol]

OK sounds like the one you will have to help from here on. You need to take one step at a time, first Indian runners take 28 so that's a good sign, second, I need to know what your settings are at? Not concerned about the inside yet. Give me those readings so we can see what we need to change....


DON"T PANICK YET, this is NOT the time. LOL, AHHHHH!!!!

 

[Lacrystol]

OK Mallards can take up to 29 days so we need to add another day for them. Now let me check on magpies.

 

[purplesquirrel]

temperature is set to 37.5c and the humidity is at 94-95% humidity now, but I think it fluctuated..
it's a weird Japanese make and instructions are really odd, so I just set the levels as best I could.

most of the ducks are very indian runer-looking, but they obviously needed a little longer.
I'm not touching them anymore, I think they'll hatch tomorrow sometime, hopefully...

 

[Lacrystol]

temperature is set to 37.5c and the humidity is at 94-95% humidity now, but I think it fluctuated..
it's a weird Japanese make and instructions are really odd, so I just set the levels as best I could.

most of the ducks are very indian runer-looking, but they obviously needed a little longer.
I'm not touching them anymore, I think they'll hatch tomorrow sometime, hopefully...

95% for HUMIDITY!!!! get that DOWN. OMG, no wonder they are not out yet. GET THAT DOWN...

 

[Lacrystol]

temperature is set to 37.5c and the humidity is at 94-95% humidity now, but I think it fluctuated..
it's a weird Japanese make and instructions are really odd, so I just set the levels as best I could.

most of the ducks are very indian runer-looking, but they obviously needed a little longer.
I'm not touching them anymore, I think they'll hatch tomorrow sometime, hopefully...

Not with the Humidity so HIGH, they can't absorb all that water and there yolk, they will get tired out before they get out. 94-95% is way to high. How long has it been this high???

If more then three days, you need to lower it down to about 50% give them a chance to get rid of all that water so they can absorb... I'm surprise they are still alive. OUCH. I had mine at 80 and Killed them all.

 

[purplesquirrel]

hmmm maybe it wasn't that high...I'm not at home now, I will check when I get back.
(to be honest, I'm not good at remembering numbers)

I'm not stupid, even though just then I sounded it...I'm awesome with animals and I've successfully raised my chickens from an incubator.

I'll let you know what my incubator says, I definitely set it to what I read from various duck breeding websites was best for them.

 

[Lacrystol]

hmmm maybe it wasn't that high...I'm not at home now, I will check when I get back.
(to be honest, I'm not good at remembering numbers)

I'm not stupid, even though just then I sounded it...I'm awesome with animals and I've successfully raised my chickens from an incubator.

I'll let you know what my incubator says, I definitely set it to what I read from various duck breeding websites was best for them.

Your humidity needs to be at 65% and no higher then 70% they can tolerate 75 but that is really pushing it. The lower the better right now..