I have 8 eggs that should have hatched 2 days ago this morning I found 1 egg with half the shell missing but the baby still in the sack. Is it gonna hatch or is it gonna die?
It will only survive if you help! This is known as shrink wrapping and must be attended to ASAP. Use warm water and tweezers to separate the duckling from the membrane very slowly and carefully. Warm water will help free the membrane that is most likely stuck to the down feathers.
If you help it out of it's shell and it bleeds stop. Is what I read on a very good hatching link. It really only last resort as the duckling could still pass away unfortunately.
Make sure he has an air hole in the membrane and that his beak is clear firstly, then you can start helping him from the membrane. Use a wet cotton bud (q tip) to wet the membrane and ease it from the duckling very very slowly...the water will make the membrane clear so you can see any veins, try and avoid them. If you get a bleed, press some **** paper towel on the bleed to stop it, and put him back in the incubator to let the veins dry up some more, it means he's not quite ready, try again in an hour or so. It's a slow process and can take hours. Oh, and only work on him for 5 to 10 mins at a time, so he doesn't get cold, keep popping him back in the incubator to warm up. Search the forums for the "assisted hatch" thread, lots of helpful info on there.... I had to do an assisted hatch with mine 4 days ago, and happy to say the little fella is now running around the brooder fit as a fiddle. Good luck, hope everything works out well.
