How to take care of NEW hatched Chick

[barkpurr]

Hi there, I have a NEW chick hatching as I type!
I have had 2 eggs in a make shift incubate box. Box within a box. I have had a heat light over the box, in the smaller box, I have some hay, small cup with water in corner, lid on with corner open a bit for air. Temperature kept at 99 for the last 21 days. I kept turning the eggs myself every few hours round the clock and at night a couple times. I kept the temp down to 93ish the last few days though.
TODAY one of the eggs started to pip! Chick is pecking the hole and peeping very loud. The other egg is not yet. Question? Should I move out some of the hay so the chick doesn't stick to it, if a bit gooey? Should I keep the chick in the same smaller box with other egg or more it just to the outside in the bigger box? LIke I said, I have a larger box, about 2 feet by 2 1/2 feet and have the smaller box setting inside that box. The smaller box is about 1 foot wide and 10" long. I am so excited!
Also, once chick is out,,,,,,,should I wait to offer water? I know to wait to give food? HELP please.
OH We do have chickens in our back yard, so can't introduce this one to them. Will build another coop for these if all goes well with them.

 

[Lil Peeps]

It will be good without food and water till its all dry and fluffy and ready to be moved to the brooder since the yolk sac it absorbed sustains it for a while. If the little box is big enough you can just leave it in that box, or when it is a little more active you can move it to the bigger box. Don't worry if it's knocking around the other egg, the other egg will be okay, maybe a little shaken I imagine but itll survive, it happens in natural hens nest and in my incubator and all the other eggs are always okay.. If it looks like the hay is being a problem and starts to stick you can remove some of it, but it shouldn't be too much of a problem I imagine because that's how chicks raised by a hen would be in a nest of hay. Great job on your hatch and good luck on the other egg.

 

[barkpurr]

Thank you so much!! Right now, it's still pipping, strong peeping, whole is a bit bigger than a peaceful and tiny cracks around it, can see the beak too. How long does it take?

 

[barkpurr]

Pipping started about 9 hours ago. It has now been almost 13 hours and there is still the one hole, a tiny bit bigger, I can see its eye and beak too. Should I worry? It's also by birthday! Lol (8th)

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Pipping started about 9 hours ago. It has now been almost 13 hours and there is still the one hole, a tiny bit bigger, I can see its eye and beak too. Should I worry? It's also by birthday! Lol (8th)

Happy Birthday.

A chick can take 24 hours to go from pip to zip and actually hatch. I don't recommend interfering for at least 18-24 hours. Even at 24 hours when I assist often I don't get far because there are still a decent amount of veining down towards the bottom of the egg. Until the vascular system is shut down there isn't much you can do w/o risking bleed out or harming the chick. Good luck!

 

[barkpurr]

HELP!! 911 I am panicing for sure. It will be 24 hours at 2pm my Calif. USA time. It is now almost 12 noon here. The whole in the shell is about the size of quarter, round and no zip. The beak and head is no longer at the whole it is lower now and the poor chick is peeping so loud when I'm near it. The feathrs are very dry, which is clearly seen and some even touching out that circular hole. This is my FIRST egg to hatch ever and I don't know when to intervene? Please help. PHOTO ATTACHED

 

[Lil Peeps]

I would say wait for a little more since the membrane is still white it's not too dried out. The baby is probably just finishing that yolk sac. I've had some pip and hatch 30 hours apart and they were still fine, by then their membranes were darkening and turning brown. If it looks a little dry you can gently mist the membranes with warm water. I think don't intervene yet. Hang in there, I know this hatching thing can be really stressful!

 

[Lil Peeps]

If you want you can help it out a little and break away some of the shell, but just make sure all the blood vessels have receded it looks like it's ready to hatch so it should be okay. Just gently break off small pieces of shell and try to not damage and leave the membrane if you can, if the chicks peep is still loud thas a very good sign if it starts getting really quiet and the peeps become less and less frequent you definitely need to help it and quick because that would mean the baby's getting too weak. Just make sure you have enough humidity in there and just make sure you check on the little guy every once in a while.

 

[Lil Peeps]

Oh yeah and on yet another note, I've had a chick do the exact same thing just widen her pip and not zip, she did this for hours, sleeping then breaking away a little bit. But she did finally end up zipping and kicking out of her shell and now she's 10 weeks old and happily walking around our coop. So this is something that has happened before and my chick made it out all by herself. Yours may end up needing help,though. You just have to watch it and see.

 

[barkpurr]

THANK YOU for replying, I am panicing. The white is dry not moist at all. I did break a tiny bit of shell by his beak. He is moving. Hope it's a SHE. lol. When you say blood, all I see is feathers. Where would blood be? It is very dry. I have just a cup of water in the box, remember. Not a regular incubator. Box within a box, heat lamp, etc. on hay. Should I keep the egg on it's side or? The other eggs next to it, hasn't done anything yet. What should I do, just wait or break away more shell since the white is dry?