How can you tell if a chick is shrink wrapped?

[XilverAngel]

How will you be able to tell? They are in a non transparent shell, and if they start chirping you assume they're going to make it out themselves....how will you ever know if it's shrink wrapped or not?

 

[CapricornFarm]

They will pip but not zip for more than 24 hours. That's when you know they are stuck.

 

[XilverAngel]

oh really? ah, i need to keep an eye out for my eggs then... thanks a bunch!

 

[CapricornFarm]

It is best not to help them unless they are shrink wrapped , because the membranes will bleed if you go messing with them too soon. And sometimes they don't hatch for a reason, like I helped one from a shipped egg and it had no skull on top so you could see its brain.

 

[XilverAngel]

Oh goodness! That must have been quite a horrifying sight... Goodness, I don't think i would have the heart for that. :[ But thanks for your response, I will pray that they will hatch by themselves without shrink wrap!! ><

 

[CapricornFarm]

Yes, but it does go to show sometimes nature knows best. It died shortly after hatching. Good luck on your hatch

 

[RhodeRunner]

It often occurs that a chick will pip, but not make it out. Those ones I find are just not healthy enough to make it. However, a shrink wrapped chick is from humidity, not necessarily a weak chick. They should live the whole hatching period, and you will see their fluff start to dry. If they are drying then they are getting stuck. As Hot2Pot suggested wait at least 24 hours as you want to make sure the blood system has been shut off from the membrane, otherwise the chick will bleed to death as you try to yank him out.
I have noted that chances of leg and feet deformity are higher with chicks that get shrink wrapped in.
Good luck with your hatch!

 

[Gypsy07]

Yup. I recently had to help a duckling out. I waited a full 48 hours after pip to be sure his blood vessels would be dried up. He made it out fine, bu with cyrled toes on one foot. I assume that's from being squashed up inside the shell for longer than he was meant to be...

You're hatching your eggs under a broody though, aren't you? I don't think you should really worry about shrinkwrapping. For some reason it doesn't seem to happen even half as much with eggs under a broody. It's mostly an incubator problem I think. The hens know what they're doing better than we ever will!