How can I tell if my gosling has died or not before hatching out?

[SmithsCoop41]

Hey y'all,

Well, I have decided to incubate my very first goose egg. It was one I found in the nest, but no clue how long it's been there or how long it was incubated by the hen. I did candle it, and it looks like a solid dark mass that has filled up a majority of the egg except a small part at the top (the air sac). I have not seen no movement at all by the gosling inside, or heard any noise (chirps, etc) when I held it up to my ear. I'm not sure if goslings do noises like chicks do inside the shell when they're getting ready to hatch or not, but figured I'd just see if I could hear anything since I couldn't see any movement. I didn't see the hen on the nest, but it's clear that one has been setting on it. If I had to guess how far along the development is, I would say between 3-4 weeks? I'm not sure because I've never incubated any goose eggs. I do not have it in my incubator inside, but I did put it under my incubator outside (chicken hen in the coop). I have a couple moody broodies and decided since I don't know exactly how far along it is in the incubation, the natural incubator would be best. It is currently being incubated by my "Black Betty" orpington. I have only misted it one time and put it back under her. It did seem to me though that the egg held it's warmth pretty good until I got it in the incubator. I read somewhere on here that if it holds the warmth after so many minutes that that means it's still got a live gosling in it, and if it cools down after so long, it is probably dead already? Is this true? I already know what to look for during the early stages of development to know it's viable/live (veins and whatnot), but I haven't seen any movement by the gosling in this egg (like no shadow silhouettes or anything at all) and it is filled in pretty much all the way, and it's a solid dark, except for spot at the top which is the air sac. I also have not noticed any external pips, and have not heard any pecking sounds from inside the shell which would mean it's trying to pip internally. I just really hope I've still got a live baby. Can anyone offer any help with this? I'm located in southeast georgia, so the humidity and temp has been pretty nice lately.

 

[MGG]

Hey y'all,

Well, I have decided to incubate my very first goose egg. It was one I found in the nest, but no clue how long it's been there or how long it was incubated by the hen. I did candle it, and it looks like a solid dark mass that has filled up a majority of the egg except a small part at the top (the air sac). I have not seen no movement at all by the gosling inside, or heard any noise (chirps, etc) when I held it up to my ear. I'm not sure if goslings do noises like chicks do inside the shell when they're getting ready to hatch or not, but figured I'd just see if I could hear anything since I couldn't see any movement. I didn't see the hen on the nest, but it's clear that one has been setting on it. If I had to guess how far along the development is, I would say between 3-4 weeks? I'm not sure because I've never incubated any goose eggs. I do not have it in my incubator inside, but I did put it under my incubator outside (chicken hen in the coop). I have a couple moody broodies and decided since I don't know exactly how far along it is in the incubation, the natural incubator would be best. It is currently being incubated by my "Black Betty" orpington. I have only misted it one time and put it back under her. It did seem to me though that the egg held it's warmth pretty good until I got it in the incubator. I read somewhere on here that if it holds the warmth after so many minutes that that means it's still got a live gosling in it, and if it cools down after so long, it is probably dead already? Is this true? I already know what to look for during the early stages of development to know it's viable/live (veins and whatnot), but I haven't seen any movement by the gosling in this egg (like no shadow silhouettes or anything at all) and it is filled in pretty much all the way, and it's a solid dark, except for spot at the top which is the air sac. I also have not noticed any external pips, and have not heard any pecking sounds from inside the shell which would mean it's trying to pip internally. I just really hope I've still got a live baby. Can anyone offer any help with this? I'm located in southeast georgia, so the humidity and temp has been pretty nice lately.

Can you post any candling pictures? Do you still see any veins along the top?
Chickens are usually not the best for incubating goose eggs, I've tried it a handful of times, and even with large hens they never cover the eggs well enough, even with only one or two eggs. Geese are just too different. I've never had success with goose eggs under hens.

 

[SmithsCoop41]

Can you post any candling pictures? Do you still see any veins along the top?

Not at the moment I can't post any pictures, as I'm not at home. And no I cannot see any veins at the top, but there is maybe a slight red line between like where the dark mass stops and the air cell starts?? I guess could be a vein? Idk.....

 

[SmithsCoop41]

Can you post any candling pictures? Do you still see any veins along the top?
Chickens are usually not the best for incubating goose eggs, I've tried it a handful of times, and even with large hens they never cover the eggs well enough, even with only one or two eggs. Geese are just too different. I've never had success with goose eggs under hens.

I figured she would cover the egg pretty well, as she is pretty big. LOL

 

[MGG]

Not at the moment I can't post any pictures, as I'm not at home. And no I cannot see any veins at the top, but there is maybe a slight red line between like where the dark mass stops and the air cell starts?? I guess could be a vein? Idk.....

Are any open spaces pale yellow in color or are they orangey-red?

 

[SmithsCoop41]

Are any open spaces pale yellow in color or are they orangey-red?

Do you mean like in the air cell area? is it pale yellow or orangey-red? Or do you mean like anywhere else on the egg, like would indicate maybe a crack or whatnot?

 

[SmithsCoop41]

Update 04-11-24
I have seen the gosling moving inside this morning AND pecking sound. It’s still under my hen. I have added some water on the shell to try to soften it up some combined with putting it back under the hen. Is there a time frame when I may need to step in and help, maybe a small hole? I only noticed some movement yesterday evening. I can see some small silhouette now though. Do I need to take from under hen and put in my incubator inside?

 

[MGG]

Do you mean like in the air cell area? is it pale yellow or orangey-red? Or do you mean like anywhere else on the egg, like would indicate maybe a crack or whatnot?

Just the gaps between the fetus in the egg. Usually when they're alive and healthy they're red-ish in color, but when they die they turn yellow from the decomposing veins. You can usually see a good gap in the pointy end of the egg. It's also helpful to candle the pointy end to check for veins late in incubation when the egg is too full to see much else. There's a gap right in between the fetus' legs where the yolk is that you should be able to see veins in.

 

[MGG]

Update 04-11-24
I have seen the gosling moving inside this morning AND pecking sound. It’s still under my hen. I have added some water on the shell to try to soften it up some combined with putting it back under the hen. Is there a time frame when I may need to step in and help, maybe a small hole? I only noticed some movement yesterday evening. I can see some small silhouette now though. Do I need to take from under hen and put in my incubator inside?

That's great it's still alive! I'd probably just leave it there for now if it's definitely still alive. It's risky to move eggs to a incubator unless it's perfectly calibrated and stable.
Not really with geese. They shouldn't really ever need assistance. They're very strong but slow hatchers. If they make it to hatch they usually have no issues. They take forever to absorb the yolk though, don't rush them. It's easy to get impatient and start picking bits of shell off. Sit on your hands, lol. It's common for them to take two to three days or more sometimes to actually hatch after pipping. I wouldn't let the chicken hen raise it though, pull it right after it hatches.

 

[SmithsCoop41]

That's great it's still alive! I'd probably just leave it there for now if it's definitely still alive. It's risky to move eggs to a incubator unless it's perfectly calibrated and stable.
Not really with geese. They shouldn't really ever need assistance. They're very strong but slow hatchers. If they make it to hatch they usually have no issues. They take forever to absorb the yolk though, don't rush them. It's easy to get impatient and start picking bits of shell off. Sit on your hands, lol. It's common for them to take two to three days or more sometimes to actually hatch after pipping. I wouldn't let the chicken hen raise it though, pull it right after it hatches.

Okay thank u! I’m so excited! And yes I was gonna pull it as soon as it hatched. Thank u!