HELP WITH AN ASSISTED HATCH!!!!!

[saltandpepper2]

Ok, so I have a very important egg that pipped well, and then didn't move at all for almost 24 hours, while peeping loudly, but making no progress. I made the newby mistake of trying to help, (first hatch), and slowly peeled just enough shell off so that it could breathe properly, wrapped it in a wet paper towel, then put it back in. Made NO more progress after 5 more hours, so I peeled back a tad amount of membrane, but there was a dab of blood, so I figured that it's veins hadn't receded properly, and put it back in.... no more progress since then, and I'm really worried... I NEED this chick to survive, and don't know what to do!!! Please help!

 

[teamfreewill]

Don't rush. It can take hours and hours for a chick to hatch. If you see blood, she is definitely not ready to come out of her egg yet. Some of my birds took over 48 hours to fully hatch. Check that membrane again in a few hours and keep us posted.

 

[Susan10]

Good luck! I'm on day 28 with misshapen air celled duck eggs. Nervous!

 

[saltandpepper2]

Don't rush. It can take hours and hours for a chick to hatch. If you see blood, she is definitely not ready to come out of her egg yet. Some of my birds took over 48 hours to fully hatch. Check that membrane again in a few hours and keep us posted.

Here's a pic of the damage that I've done so far

Any more advice???

 

[saltandpepper2]

Good luck! I'm on day 28 with misshapen air celled duck eggs. Nervous!

Thank you!!! Good luck to you too!

 

[saltandpepper2]

Any one else???? I need help!

 

[robgray]

You have done 2 things maybe....1. Reduced the humidity which is high to keep those membranes moist and 2. Made it harder for the chick to actually pip its way out now because the pipping is caused by lack of O2 in the shell. Now the shell has been opened enough to possibly stop that process. The most important thing now is that you don't allow the exposed membranes to dry out. I would use triple antibiotic salve ( not ointment) and apply with a q tip to the outside exposed membranes ( use aquaphor in an emergency) and Keep the humidity up to prevent chick from sticking to shell and further hatch problems. Most likely you will have to hatch this chick but wait until the blood vessels are fully receded and brownish in color before helping more. The last thing you want to do is hatch a chick early that hasn't ingested all the yolk and still has and exposed umbilicus. I promise you we have all been there on our first hatch.
Good luck for a healthy baby duckling.

 

[saltandpepper2]

You have done 2 things maybe....1. Reduced the humidity which is high to keep those membranes moist and 2. Made it harder for the chick to actually pip its way out now because the pipping is caused by lack of O2 in the shell. Now the shell has been opened enough to possibly stop that process. The most important thing now is that you don't allow the exposed membranes to dry out. I would use triple antibiotic salve ( not ointment) and apply with a q tip to the outside exposed membranes ( use aquaphor in an emergency) and Keep the humidity up to prevent chick from sticking to shell and further hatch problems. Most likely you will have to hatch this chick but wait until the blood vessels are fully receded and brownish in color before helping more. The last thing you want to do is hatch a chick early that hasn't ingested all the yolk and still has and exposed umbilicus. I promise you we have all been there on our first hatch.
Good luck for a healthy baby duckling.

The humidity has been in the high 70'S the whole time... It's 81 right now. I've been keeping the membrane moist, and temp stable. It's around 1 am where I am.. Should I pull an all nighter, or wait until the morning to help it anymore? I just checked it, and the veins have started to recede around the exposed area. That's a good sign, right? It's been in hatch for 30 something hours now... And I NEED it to survive. Thanks so much for the help!

 

[saltandpepper2]

Good news! Checked the egg this morning, and almost all veins had receded! I peeled off the egg shell all around the air cell, but left the membrane intact. They're a few veins, but most are all shriveled. I'll check her in 3 hours to see if I can peel the membrane back... so excited that I'm about to see my special chick!

 

[Susan10]

Pics! Pics!