Help please...1st time to try and hatch baby ducks

[Miss Lydia]

A look at the past 72 hours...

Congrats, he is adorable.

 

[WVduckchick]

Oh my goodness.... this is going to be one spoiled-rotten duckling!

 

[Carolinebigsky]

I know!!! Ha!

 

[Carolinebigsky]

So...I have 7 eggs left and no movement or pipping...we are on day 29. Since this little one was stuck, do I assume that we lost all the others. Especially since we had to open the incubator so much to help the baby?

Also...he is a picture from this morning.

 

[Miss Lydia]

So...I have 7 eggs left and no movement or pipping...we are on day 29. Since this little one was stuck, do I assume that we lost all the others. Especially since we had to open the incubator so much to help the baby?

Also...he is a picture from this morning.

Aww it loves it's Teddy, so adorable..

 

[WVduckchick]

Opening the incubator wouldn't necessarily have hurt anything, but you could pull the eggs and candle them for any movement inside, and check to see if any of the air cells have drawn down.

Similar to this:

 

[Carolinebigsky]

I had not been marking the air...so I did the float test. 3 floated with about 10% out of water...2 floated with about 15% out of water and one looked like a bobber and smelled so we got rid of it.

Do I need to intervene considering the trouble the other one went through and that they are overdue?

 

[Carolinebigsky]

I also candles them and no internal pip or movement.

Any advice is much appreciated. Thanks

 

[WVduckchick]

Floating only means that the air cell supports the weight of the egg. You have to watch for movement. Its a way to detect even the slightest movement inside the egg, which can be hard to see while candling.

At this point, since its been so long since the first one hatched, I would pick the one least likely to be alive, and slowly crack into the air cell. Don't pierce the membrane yet. Peek in, and look for movement. If you don't see anything, you can open enough up to stick a finger inside, and feel for movement. If still nothing, break the air cell end completely off to confirm death.

 

[Carolinebigsky]

Ok...thanks so much. I will give that a try...