Incubation issues or bad chicken stock (no pun intended) (ok maybe a little)

[blr8t2]

Ok so I hatched some eggs and both in the last batch and a recent one I had troubled chicks. Last batch one could not walk, her 'ankles' looked swollen and red like they were injured so maybe they were I do not know but from hatch she couldnt walk. She died. This batch I have another who cannot walk and her right foot is slightly larger than the left and is sort of clubbish and unresponsive, and she same side wing appears to be smaller. I doubt she will make it either. I also had one whose umbilical didnt seal up I guess and he leaked yolk all over then his little intestines came out a little bit and I was wondering for future reference if this can be bandaged up before instentines come out (it was about a large pea sized lump not all of it) or is it fatal. And the defects, can they be cause by bad incubating? I mean out of about 20 chicks 2 were unable to walk the rest were fine. They arent inbred as far as I know, I got the older hens in my flock from some people starting a brand new flock so I don't know for sure. The only way it would be an issue I guess is if the rooster is a few generations offspring of some of the hens but i believe he is the same age as them so i doubt it. I didn't really want more chicks but I medicated and had to withold eggs so i figured i would hatch them instead of waste them. Help?!?

 

[sumi]

Can you give us more info? What was your incubation temperature and the humidity during the first 18 days and lockdown? How old were the eggs before you set them?

I'm a little concerned about the medicine residue in the eggs and the possible outcome if you incubate them... I've heard of people incubating eggs after deworming their hens with disastrous results. There isn't much information doing the rounds on the effect of different medicine's residue on developing embryos, but the bit I have seen so far was bad. If you don't want to waste the eggs you can scramble them and feed them back to the hens maybe?

 

[blr8t2]

Well, first of all I have a basic Hobivator incubator which has always worked well, I dont have a humidity checker and the temp was pretty much a constant 100 degrees except early on when my son turned off the light switch he didnt know was operating the bator. So for about 6 hours they lost heat and it took another few hours for them to feel warm again. I think at that time they had been in the incubator 24 hours or so, maybe 36, I just know it was early. But that was this batch not the other. Im wiondering if I missed turning them correctly? At one point I had 32 eggs in there before i could weed out infertiles and early demise(s) and maybe I missed one or two on occasion. I tried not to but who knows The eggs were gathered for no more than 7 days and kept in the fridge, warmed to room temp before incubating. And for those new to hatching, I strongly suggest you get an appropriate heat lamp for the chicks. They have to stay warm, but not overheat! And just cause the bulb is hot to the touch does by no means, mean it is warm enough for the chicks to survive. I made due with what I had left as 2 good bulbs eventually blew, but my chicks were older and had lots of feathers. Forgetting this, i used the same bulb for new chicks. Lost 2 from not being warm enough grrr. And I have hatched plenty of eggs, i think I just got too busy with weather warming up and all and coudn't focus well on any one thing lol.

 

[blr8t2]

Well, it's been 5 days and the little crippled chick is still hanging on. She tries her best to hobble around, and is way eager to drink when I hold her so she can get water. She is even learning to go to the dish herself and stretch up to get her own water. So i keep it full and easy to reach. She must eat or she would have passed by now, I have to play with the food and get the other chicks to eat with her in the food bowl then like any decent chicken, she has to join it! Anyone with chickens knows if one has it, the rest need it! The last little one born like this didn't know how to eat, she would just put her beak i he food but not know to open it to get something. So send good thoughts please, I'm trying to keep her alive, maybe in time and as she grows she will be well enough to be a part of the flock. If not or they don't accept her I will send her to someone who can care for her and give her a good life! <crossing fingers!>

 

[Calix]

At one point I had 32 eggs in there before i could weed out infertiles and early demise(s) and maybe I missed one or two on occasion. I tried not to but who knows The eggs were gathered for no more than 7 days and kept in the fridge, warmed to room temp before incubating.

I wonder if keeping in the fridge had something to do with it? If the fridge was an actual, functioning one like you'd keep food in (mine's at 38 degrees Fahrenheit right now, pretty cold for for hatching eggs) I'd think it would be too cold and possibly harm the embryos-to-be... I'm not an expert on this, though, so I'm not sure.

 

[blr8t2]

Lol yes, it's my functioning fridge, not sure of the degrees, but it could be too cold for sure. I read a while back you can keep them cold for up to 10 days while you gather eggs, then incubate them all at once to avoid chicks of different ages. Something to consider though. I get 8 eggs a day now, by summer i will get at least a dozen so maybe I will experiment and collect a days eggs and set those and see what I get. I have a lot of chicks right now, it's a bit overwhelming and so hard to part with them!!! Terrible to think about making more, but I can always sell them. I guess Could always expand the coop