How to clean a sticky chick?

[Tompa]

Hi,

One of my copper marans really struggled to hatch, taking 24 hours longer to move from unzip to hatch. She had membrane glued to her back and head, so once she was stomping around fairly strongly I took her out of the incubator and used warm water and a paper towel to gently moisten the membrane and wash it off. Left her back in the incubator overnight to dry off but this morning she still looks sticky, with just a tiny bit of fluffiness under her belly. I am worried that washing her again risks chilling her, but also that placing her in the brooder when she isn’t fluffy might also chill her! I have a brinsea brooder, and there are 4 chicks already in there who all hatched more or less at the same time so there should be plenty of warmth. I’m also worried that the longer I leave her in the incubator the more likely it is that there might be some pushing and shoving from her stronger nestmates when I do introduce her (they have already tried to eat each others’ toes!).

Any advice gratefully received

 

[featheredplanets]

If you have an old soft toothbrush you can gently brush her down upwards, it should help get rid of the membrane.

 

[Tompa]

Thanks! I’ll see if I can get a baby toothbrush

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

If you wash it just blow dry it. Then it doesn't stay chilled.

 

[Tompa]

If you wash it just blow dry it. Then it doesn't stay chilled.

I wondered about blow drying but worries that it would be too strong and get too hot, but. I might try that now. I washed with just warm water - is that right, or should I be adding a little soap?

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

You can either as long as you rinse all the soap off. I usually just use water and blow dry it in my hands. If it gets too hot for my hands then its too hot for the chick. Easy peasy.

 

[Crestcrazy2]

I've heard blow-dry can easily overheat the chick so be careful ,
just left mine alone for a while and used a toothbrush to fluff it up for a couple days and it's all good now except for a tiny spot of membrane by its eye, it's a couple weeks old now which is kind of crazy