Hen cracked egg. Need help!

[NelsonE]

Our novice hen stepped on one of her eggs and made some cracks in it. There are a couple small holes where it looks like the membrane is punctured. We took the egg out of the nest figuring that the mother would just clumsily step on it more and destroy it totally. It’s currently in a plastic container with a heat lamp on it keeping the temp at 101-102. Not sure the humidity level but we have a wet rag inside with plastic wrap on top of the container. There is condensation on the plastic wrap. The baby is inside and has been peeping (making sounds) on and off for about 24 hours with no external opening or crack created by the chick itself yet. We hear a mostly rhythmic internal clicking sound now for about 12 hours. So here are the questions: 1. WHat do we do now? Still wait? Assist the chick out? Perhaps the membrane with its tiny holes has dried and it is stuck? 2. What is that clicking sound? Is it the beak of the bird hitting the shell? It sounds too consistent and rhythmic though...could that mean that it is the actual heart of the chick we are hearing and it is stuck to the internal membrane? HELP!!!

 

[littlepip]

ALWAYS WAIT 48 HOUR BEFORE YOU HELP! don't help the chick out, as it might not be fully "cooked" if it doesn't make any progress in 48 hours, you may want to help. use a tweezers and open up the hole a bit. keep posting updates! there's about a 50% chance he/she will live. I hope it makes it!!!

 

[littlepip]

video would help too. especially with that clicking noise.

 

[JanetMarie]

The clicking sound is the chick breathing. It's difficult weather to assist in hatching or not. Times that I've assisted I shouldn't have, and there have been times when I should have assisted and didn't.

Normally all of chicks hatch here, weather by incubator or under a broody, on the 20th day. Everyone who is going to hatch on their own hatches in the next 24 hours after the first one.

After 24 hours I candle the remaining eggs, and if there is any movement or peeping in any eggs, then I carefully assist.

If the chick is left in the shell too long after pipping, there can be leg and other permanent deformities (in my experience), because the chick was ready to come out 24 hours ago, and didn't, and continues to grow.

I have found overall, that it's better to assist than not to.

If the egg is cracked and humidity is not high enough the membrane could dry out and the chick may be stuck.

 

[JanetMarie]

If you do assist, use a paper towel dipped in warm water to dampen the membrane as you go, being careful to keep any water away from the beak and nostrils.

 

[Mosey2003]

Don't try to assist before it's even pipped, you'll bleed it to death.

 

[littlepip]

One of my ducklings hatched with an attached egg yolk. it bled a lot, and even had blood in its nose. that duck still lives today! DON'T LOOSE HOPE!

 

[NelsonE]

Here are some pics.

 

[NelsonE]

You can see that we put some wax on it to try to plug up the tiny holes created by the mother.

 

[dalasgalas]

following.