Help Please!! Chicks struggling to hatch

[Hybridroo]

Hi all,

I have had several chicks hatch already, but some appear to be struggling to get out of the shell and I don't know what to do.

Usually I see that they are making the first hole in the egg with their beak and I come back an hour later and they are stumbling around the incubator. I had 5 of them hatch this way.

Today before I left for work the last 2 chicks made their first holes in the shell. I came back 8 hours later and they are still in the shell with only the opening hole. Are they too weak to go further? Do i need to give them a hand?

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Hi all,

I have had several chicks hatch already, but some appear to be struggling to get out of the shell and I don't know what to do.

Usually I see that they are making the first hole in the egg with their beak and I come back an hour later and they are stumbling around the incubator. I had 5 of them hatch this way.

Today before I left for work the last 2 chicks made their first holes in the shell. I came back 8 hours later and they are still in the shell with only the opening hole. Are they too weak to go further? Do i need to give them a hand?

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Chicks can take up to 24 hours to zip after pip. Chances are the others had been pipped for sometime and just weren't noticeable before they zipped. My chicks average 12-18 hours between pip and zip.

 

[song of joy]

I wouldn't worry just yet. Sometimes it takes 12 to 24 hours from pip to hatch. I've had healthy chicks go at least 12-16 hours.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

I wouldn't worry just yet. Sometimes it takes 12 to 24 hours from pip to hatch. I've had healthy chicks go at least 12-16 hours.

I actually think they're healthier when it takes 12 hours rather than 6.