High Humidity Please Help

[DwayneNLiz]

Congrats!! Cant wait to see the new arrivals!!

 

[MrsChicky55]

So update, I woke up at 3 & checked on the chicks. One was fully zipped for I don’t know how long. I waited for half an hour but it’s movements just weren’t very effective. There was another chick slowly zipping too so I went back to bed. Over 3 hours later those 2 chicks still hadn’t hatched. The one that had been zipped for at least 4 hours the movements were pretty feeble. I put a warm moist paper towel over the half zipped chick and helped the other one out. But I was afraid the other would shrink wrap. So now 13 chicks, 5 very quiet eggs with no pips, night 22. Not sure what to do now. I need some more chick pictures but here’s the first.

 

[MrsChicky55]

Also, some of my chicks are pretty sticky so they aren’t fluffing up, they are stiffing. What do you do for that?

 

[WVduckchick]

Cute!! Congrats, and good job!!

The sticky is because of the high humidity. Not enough moisture gets out of the egg and sticks to the chick. They will mostly work it off themselves in the first couple of days, but you can either rub them with a dry towel to help fluff it, or if they are strong enough for a light bath, you can wash it off. Just be sure to dry them well, and not let them get chilled. I prefer to keep them dry, as much as possible. Just depends on the amount of sticky, and where it is.

 

[MrsChicky55]

So my final breakdown. 34 shipped eggs:
1 cracked- tossed
2 early quitters
12 infertile "no bullseye on egg-topsy
13 chicks- YAY
5 didn't hatch

Of the 5 that didn't hatch
2 were malpositioned head between feet.
1 underdeveloped
1 piped internally and had sac absorbed but didn't hatch
1 correctly positioned, didn't pip but sac was mostly absorbed

Not sure what happened with the last 2. Kind of sad they were two of prettiest of the bunch, looked pretty perfect one white 1 black. They were laid to rest positioned like yin/yang. My last 2 eggs that did hatch struggled. One completely zipped but couldn't hatch, it was at least 4 hours and the movements were feeble. The other had been half zipped for at least 4 hours. Can't help but wonder if I'd have jumped in earlier if those 2 would have made it, or even the malpositioned ones? I waited till the morning 23. I'll send pictures once it's light out. These baby silkies are pretty darn cute! But some of them are sticky and their feathers hardened instead of fluffing (Funny the sticky ones were the last ones to hatch, more impacted by humidity?) Do I just massage the feathers to fluff them up? Spritz with water massage & blow dry?

 

[MrsChicky55]

Some pics of the little fuzzies!

 

[MrsChicky55]

Due to the high humidity I had a couple really sticky chicks (they happened to be the last two hatched and both needed assistance after over 4 hours partially or fully zipped). Here’s one of the sticky chicks and her spa day. I used my blow drier on low & warm. Spritzed with warm water used the wash cloth to massage dry, I used a q tip on her head. FYI I had already given her a half bath & blow dry before any of these pictures, that’s how sticky she was! The spritz & wash cloth worked way better than a bath.

 

[WVduckchick]

Oh my GOODNESS!! Such cuties!! Congrats!

 

[UThobbyfarmer]

They're adorable! That's not a bad hatch for shipped eggs.

The sticky chicks I've had I hold right under the faucet with warm water. I keep water away from their heads but everything from the neck down gets rinsed until completely clean. The head I do with a wet sponge. Then towel dry and back into the incubator till dry.

 

[getaclue]