i opened an egg on day 22, waht do i do?

[nok13]

so yesterday i opened four eggs; two were just icky yolks, one was a chick which unfortunately i think i killed by pulling too hard on some shell and some blood vessel got ripped, so it got euthenized in a plastic bag and garbaged (ick.) second egg i cracked a bit open and saw a body, breathing, so i rushed it back tot he incubator, and it survived the night. so the question is, what to do. the top part of the shell is open, i see breathing, but i dont see signs of a chick struggling to get out, or move. last night there wsas a bit of egg rocking around but havent seen any since. i think some membrane is stuck on the chick also...

where should i go from here? open all the way? wait one more night? i dont think that will help to tell the truth. i think the chick is a failure to thrive chick that is viable but not livable///
the other eggs i have left in the incubator but i dont see any activity. i will try candling again, and toss more that seem dead or empty. and leave the younger batch in side as well as i think they have a better chance of survival since the incubator has been at steadier and higher temps for the second batch. although the humidity might be a tad too high...

suggestions, by tonite my time? (its 17:30 evening at the moment)

 

[Puddin Fluff]

While you are waiting on a response you might try searching for - Helping chicks out of eggs to get your answer on the one. I really don't know what is best. We just waited till the end of day anything that had not gotten it's self out went in the trash.

 

[Dzwina]

Thats way to soon to help....did it internaly pip the air cell?

 

[nok13]

nobody had pipped. i just test opened four. ok, so now ive read the link in the forum about assisted hatching; so i will try to float test them.. actually its day 23 since we set them on the 11 of december and today is the 3 of january//
so i will try the water float test on the others, and wait a bit with this one; i have a feeling it is in the shrink wrapped style, due to being opened, the membrane has stuck a bit to it///
i might try wrapping in damp towel but the bator is also quite humid which was my initial problem: low temp and too high humidity, plus not well kept eggs/

 

[nok13]

a pip!!!!!!!! from a different egg!!!!!!!!! i hear cheeping from inside, loud and strong, and a tiny bit of a crack in the egg.


the open egg is still breathing adn pulsing, so i will leave it till tomorrow.

well, at least i know that everything works now, hopefully this chick will zip out and survive/ will have to organize a small brooder for it, and some chick food/ now ov course im obsessed with listening for a cheep cheep/// i have to say that goat kidding wasnt as nerve wracking as this becaue i could always stick a hand in and help without worrying about shrink wrapping or whteve else.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

a pip!!!!!!!! from a different egg!!!!!!!!! i hear cheeping from inside, loud and strong, and a tiny bit of a crack in the egg.


the open egg is still breathing adn pulsing, so i will leave it till tomorrow.

well, at least i know that everything works now, hopefully this chick will zip out and survive/ will have to organize a small brooder for it, and some chick food/ now ov course im obsessed with listening for a cheep cheep/// i have to say that goat kidding wasnt as nerve wracking as this becaue i could always stick a hand in and help without worrying about shrink wrapping or whteve else.

I so missed your posting!! How did things turn out?????

 

[LukensFarms]

When I know that the checks are due to hatch, and one has started pipping, then chick inside the damaged shell could be helped out of the egg,. However make sure you only get the head out and slowly open towards it's bottom to make sure it has completely absorbed the yolk. If it has not, place a damp cloth over it so it can continue to absorb and get out of the shell on its own. Don't open the incubator too many times to check on it, or it may perish.

 

[Becci]

How did things go? I know this is a late reply, but for future references..

Day 22 is *way* too early to be opening unhatched eggs. The blood you saw was a sign that they were not ready to hatch. They probably would have hatched totally fine if you would have left them alone. In the future, if you suspect you've run into problems and want to know how your chicks are doing, candle and/or float test before cracking them open. That being said, day 22 is too early to candle and float test, too.. especially when you know you've had temperature issues. Before you mess with anything, wait until day 24 & if you've had low temperatures, day 25-27. I've been in your shoes, though. Because of my impatience I killed a chick that otherwise would have hatched perfectly fine.

Also, one thing that I've learned.. when you're cracking open eggs, even if you think the chick is dead, always crack it open at the air sac. That way you're not ripping veins and making a mess of the chick if it happens to be alive. And if you do have to assist hatch at any point, never take the chick completely out of it's shell. You'll end up with leg problems. Instead just zip the shell for the baby and let it kick it's way out.

Wishing you luck
I'm sure you've already read these, but hey.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/45583/how-come-people-are-so-anxious-to-help-chicks-hatch
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/9316/intervention-helping-your-chicks-hatch

 

[nok13]

so final countdown:

chick number one, the one that i opened and returned, is strong, boxing already (thai fighting chicken), and thriving.
chick number two, the one that unzipped on its own, came out with closed eyes, and balance problems, survived three days, today i euthenized it as it was already barely responding.
chick number three came out last night on its own, big and yellow, but weak neck, and leg issues. prognosis not good.
chick number four, day and a half pipped with absolutely no progress, it seems that hubby unzipped a bit, this afternoon and evening in the same position; i peeled shell, wrapped in damp cloth, we will wait and see. im not sure the chick is well formed, i think it also may have eye issues.
no other eggs even pipping.
i think that most of the problems are 1/ we had collecte d eggs over a two week period or more therefore old eggs, and stored haphazardly.
2/ too low temps for at least a week til found out how to deal with the bator.

so now i know the incubator works, and if we have good eggs and set them all the same time, then we should, statistically speaking, have a good hatch. meantime, two hens are broodingin the faraway coop, so i have no more eggs.hopefully they will stay put on their eggs, as there is no heat for that coop (water never freezes wehre we are, just cold and damp).
next mission, to buy eggs of hens i want, and set them.
meanwhile, still have several sets of eggs that hubby put in at different times form the 16 of december on, so will maintain the incubator as is til they are all out.
i dont think any more of the first batch are going to hatch but will do sink or swim tests on them this week.
hoping, meanwhile that we dont have power outages, since a storm is coming up and for us, even a simple storm (in north american new england terms) causes havoc here: if power goes out, we dont have supplemantary heating apart from a karosene heater that i ahvent filled this year (but only for emergencies since it si old ) and our house is not built to maintain temperatures. the temps rarely go below zero celsius , but then again, nothing here is built for any cold at all, which means that even if i pile towels on the bator and brooder, it could be bad news.


all in all, a good trial/ the one healthy chick is in a carboard box that hubby set up as a brooder, the only problem now will be , if and when the chick makes it past the chick state, what we do with him/her since introducing a young bird to a flock of thai fighting chickens usually ends up with a dead young chicken (unless its a pullet)//
on the other hand, this breed is so friendly. the chick comes running when it hears my husband's voice, and u can really see the intelligence (for a chicken) behind the little beady eyes. at anyrate this chick will be tri-lingual just like my dogs: thai, hebrew and english.

 

[LukensFarms]

Don't give up. I got a wireless digital thermometer from the store which shows the humidity and temperature. On the one that I got it has an arrow whether it shows the temperature rising or an arrow to the right which shows the temperature to be steady. When I implemented this I discovered much better hatches with healthier chicks as I was able to make sure their temperature was staying consistent instead of just making sure i was hitting a certain temperature. The constant fluctuating of a couple of degrees can cause chicks to have several deformations.