Incubating duck eggs- advice pretty please.

[DuckyDonna]

poor little thing might just be resting. Hatching is hard work. if you can "guess" at where the bill is and if there is a part of them membrane near it that you can make a tiny hole in it I'd vote to do it to let some air in there.

 

[xx_li_xx]

so everyone sad update, baby passed. I'm extremely sad about it, more than I thought I would be but I have tried to use it as a learning thing. He was definitely upside down and head was actually quite squished- otherwise he was positioned perfect. You could see he had attempted to internally/externally pip as there was marks on inside of egg, sadly not enough to be seen from outside for me to even see where he was, it looks like he would have struggled to move much hence maybe why no tapping or much movement from his beak. (definitely a boy if the welsh sexing thing was accurate for him) ... anyway he was breathing but quite laboured , but as he still had odd movements I said to my husband lets give him ten mins then try again, went back to look and the egg was black in places - it appears he may have nipped a vein as it looked like it was right across his beak and thats where the bleed seem to pool - so I assume really there was not much we could have done ourselves either, however I cant help but feel guilty we didn't try hard enough, or try quicker and I blame myself for trying to begin with, maybe he could have done it himself eventually. Either way poor baby didn't make it. Thank you all for your help xxx

 

[DuckyDonna]

Please don't blame yourself. WVduckchick told me when I was going through mine that sometimes their little heads are stuck in the wrong place and they just don't make it. It seems like that may be there case with yours. You did the best you could and I think you did a great job. Some things are just not meant to be unfortunately. Think about all you've learned!

 

[Muscovy Wunda]

don't put any blame on yourself! You did wonderfully. How are the other babies doing? Any emerging

 

[xx_li_xx]

Please don't blame yourself. WVduckchick told me when I was going through mine that sometimes their little heads are stuck in the wrong place and they just don't make it. It seems like that may be there case with yours. You did the best you could and I think you did a great job. Some things are just not meant to be unfortunately. Think about all you've learned!

Its been invaluable in the sense of learning but I would rather have the duckling here happy healthy and alive. He looked perfect otherwise just upside down and squished. Wish I knew where his bill was sooner but I tried and he just never gave us any hint. there was no chips inside just little like brown marks where I assume he tried as it was right where his bill would have sat - being so squished I guess is why we couldn't distinguish it?! i don't know. Im all negative and upset and mad atm.
Its all those what ifs that go round your head, even when I know looking at him on opening that if I had left him he probably wouldn't have made it anyway... still its

He was so perfect.

Thank you all for your help, I wish I believed I did a great job, I feel quite the failure and like it was all my fault. Maybe I should have left him.

Right miss negative atm x

x

 

[xx_li_xx]

don't put any blame on yourself! You did wonderfully. How are the other babies doing? Any emerging

Thank you, I cant help but blame myself atm. Im sure I will feel better soon.
Others seem to be doing ok, bit of noise and more pips on some. I cant see if any have been shrink wrapped trying to help the little one out but I for one atm am not even daring to look or assist or anything. x

 

[Muscovy Wunda]

Going off what Slash was saying about the humidity over there I think they'll be okay. Our humidity here is basiclly minus, so for me it's a big concern. But theres plenty of moisture in the UK.

 

[WVduckchick]

So sorry you lost it.
But many of us have opened ones we thought were dead, only to be surprised by a living one.
At least you gave it a shot, so don’t feel bad. I try to imagine that it turned the wrong way and died, for some reason of fate.
Just hope for the best for the rest, and don’t blame yourself for this one. Consider it a learning experience and move on.

 

[Kiwibird]

Thinking of you, and fingers crossed for the rest of your hatch. It's just so hard to take when ths happens.

 

[xx_li_xx]

Thinking of you, and fingers crossed for the rest of your hatch. It's just so hard to take when ths happens.

Thank you, I am still so upset but I know even if we didn’t intervene it was unlikely the baby would have made it as it looked quite squished and did appear to struggle- I have learned a lot from it so will be better prepared next time.

On a plus, 5.40am I’ve been woken up to a hatched little one and 3 more almost there. So I’m feeling instant relief right now.
The last 3 aren’t doing much right now but space is really lacking in the inbubator with just one hatched. It has its head in the egg haha