Is my duck pipping?

[Miss Lydia]

@istaceys if you jump in and help too soon you risk this one dying. I know you don't want it to die so please listen to @New duck mommy 2021 she has the experience and knows what she is talking about.

 

[istaceys]

Thank you so much!! Haha I’m a first time duck mom if you can’t tell!!

 

[Miss Lydia]

We've all been there so talking from experience. Just hang on and hopefully soon you'll have a sweet duckling.

 

[istaceys]

More progress and peeping! Would this be considered an external pip now? Don’t want to be paranoid and think it hasn’t externally pipped and will suffocate if I don’t intervene.

 

[Prince and Pavo]

I know you’re very concerned about the well-being of your duckling and I’m not sure if there’s much I can do to ease your mind, but always remember that in nature, they don’t get any help and must do everything on their own. If I had only one piece of advice to give it would be DO NOT STEP IN AND TRY TO ASSIST. You are far more likely to hurt and even kill the baby by doing so than just letting it do it’s own thing and hatch by itself.

Two pips take place in the hatching process: the internal pip and the external. Internal is when it breaks through the shell MEMBRANE into the air cell at the end of the egg without cracking the shell, and an EXTERNAL pip is when it cracks the shell for the first time as a result of it practically suffocating from nearly running out of air in the air cell, which causes its neck to spasm and thus crack the shell, allowing it to get oxygen from outside. The first picture you posted was after it had already externally pipped, and it has been getting oxygen ever since. Do not intervene.

Once it starts zipping, however, it is most likely fine to help it out of the shell IF IT NEEDS IT. If it’s able to zip and break out on its own, then leave it alone completely, but if it’s malpositioned then you may need to step in and break it out—ONLY AFTER IT HAS STARTED ZIPPING, AND ABSOLUTELY NOT BEFORE. I promise that you’ll regret it if you assist too early.

Patience is the key here, and letting nature take its course is the best thing you can do. I know it’s nerve racking and you just want to do the work for it, but trust me, it doesn’t work and often ends in tragedy. I do want you to know, however, that I do appreciate your love for this duckling and your desire to do what’s best for it, and also that you’re not afraid to ask any question, because we all need help sometimes and no one knows everything. Keep us updated and let us know how the hatch goes!

 

[istaceys]

it hatched!!! Thank you all for the help!!! Anyone know the breed?

 

[Prince and Pavo]

Yay! Congratulations! That’s so exciting!

I’m sorry, but I know pretty much nothing about duck breeds or how to identify them.

 

[Miss Lydia]

it hatched!!! Thank you all for the help!!! Anyone know the breed?

Where did the egg come from? could be Black Swedish although the bib is big.

Sure is precious though. Congrats!!

 

[RisingPhoenixFarms]

Oh it's just precious. I have 9 in the incubator right now and 5 externally pipped yesterday. Like you i'm super excited and nervous. Can't wait till they make it out into the world.

 

[istaceys]

A para came in with a carton of eggs and asked if I could incubate them!!! So another teacher let me borrow an incubator and he was the only one that came from the batch! I went to tractor supply and got him some friends today!! He was so happy!! Not alone anymore