I took my eggs out of the incubator on day 18 for lockdown to remove turning rollers and my finger went through the shell on three of them.

[CrazyChickenLadySue]

I am now panicking. I was preparing for lockdown and three of the eggs shells were like paper. My finger went through three of the shells. It is just into day 18. Two of them the internal membrane was breached aswell.
I set up an incubator I had free, cranked the humidity upto 75% and am keeping everything crossed. I now feel as if I have potentially killed 3 chicks, I feel absolutely terrible.
What are everyone's thoughts on the viability of these poor chicks.

 

[Quarterhorses1]

I am now panicking. I was preparing for lockdown and three of the eggs shells were like paper. My finger went through three of the shells. It is just into day 18. Two of them the internal membrane was breached aswell.
I set up an incubator I had free, cranked the humidity upto 75% and am keeping everything crossed. I now feel as if I have potentially killed 3 chicks, I feel absolutely terrible.
What are everyone's thoughts on the viability of these poor chicks.

Darn. I’m sorry this is happening. Do you have a pic? Can you see any movement?

 

[CoopBoots]

Following, I have never done manual incubation but that doesn't seem right at all. People handle hatching eggs frequently without this being a common issue. Did you get these eggs from someone else or your own hens? Maybe they were weak shelled to begin with and just deteriorated over incubation??

 

[CrazyChickenLadySue]

Darn. I’m sorry this is happening. Do you have a pic? Can you see any movement?

No sorry I don't have any pictures as I quickly set up a spare incubator with very high humidity and put them straight in to reduce the risk of shrink wrapping them. I actually have one where the membrane was breached and egg cracked almost in half and the other two were thumb sized holes so candle wax I don't think would work. I did consider trying to put some micropore dressing tape over the holes/crack but I dare not take them out of the incubator. There is no fluid leaking out of the egg.
I thought I saw one egg moving slightly last night, I didn't spend anytime assessing them when it happened as the only thing on my mind was putting them in a warm moist environment before the membrane started to dry out. I thought I heard a different cheeping noise last night as I am currently keeping them in my bedroom so I can keep a close eye on them.
To top it off last night the incubator that works the best started alarming and stopped heating and I'm expecting a dozen fertile eggs in the next few days so I'm in a complete mess at the moment and I can't find anywhere to get a low priced automatic turning incubator quickly.
Everything was going so well until last night!!!

 

[CrazyChickenLadySue]

Following, I have never done manual incubation but that doesn't seem right at all. People handle hatching eggs frequently without this being a common issue. Did you get these eggs from someone else or your own hens? Maybe they were weak shelled to begin with and just deteriorated over incubation??

I had them shipped to me, all my other eggs I got elsewhere were fine, it's just my cream legbar eggs that did that. Holding the eggs when they broke did prove the shells were really weak. I'm wondering if the chicks inside were able to get enough calcium they need from the shells to develop properly. The thought of having to dispatch any deformed chicks fills me with dread.

Darn. I’m sorry this is happening. Do you have a pic? Can you see any movement?

One hatched early but cannot walk much, using one leg but other it is trying to walk on hock then falls over, not eating or drinking, dipping it's beak in fluid and also egg yolk but it doesn't look good. I looked in another egg that didn't hatch, had one leg and wing that didn't look as well developed. Wonder if I was sold eggs that were not fit for incubating.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Shells that fragile are definitely not normal. I saw the photo in your other post - is it the chick's right leg that's the problem?