Is this horrible day NEVER going to end?

[Sylviaanne]

Soooo much going on today!

Now, I have a chick that has pipped upside down. I started pulling shell away and found the membrane dry. I had to stop because it started to bleed. I put the shell part under warm running water and now I put it back in the incubator with the beak up, so it is laying on it's side with the pointy end higher than the round end.

I had ordered some Silkie eggs and had to pick them up today. Now, I am afraid to put them in the incubator. It might explode or something worse, cook them. I hate to put it off but I think tomorrow might be a better day.

How long should I wait to really worry about this chick?

 

[kim27]

I don't think the worrying ever stops. I haven't found a good answer yet on how / when to intervene, other than use your own best judgement.

So far from trial an error I've found it better to give them some time to work it out themselves.

 

[MeepBeep]

I would personally keep the membrane moist by nesting the egg in a damp paper towel with some of the paper towel touching the membrane so that the water wicks into it... Since it's on the wrong end I would also position the pip up top so that it doesn't get blocked by anything... Actually I always rotate pipped eggs to the top even normal ones so I can monitor progress more easily, I don't do a lock down...

I generally wait 24 hours after the pip before I consider helping, if they have pipped they are getting oxygen and will be OK for awhile many times they pip and than take a nap for a day, if after say 36 hours there is no progress then I will generally open up the pip a little bit and even tap on the air sac side of the egg to encourage them to get to work... If the 48 hour point after pipping comes and they are not zipping or have started zipping but quit, I generally will zip them out at this time as 48 hours is my deadline to assist...

 

[Sylviaanne]

Paper towels coming up and the pipped end is up but not like in an egg carton. Is that what you meant? I have it laying across an egg turner rail as that is where the eggs with the floating air sacks were. I put some of mine in with them and this one is one of mine. First time this has happened. It peeped inside the shell yesterday so it has been about 24 hours. I just didn't realize it was upside down in the shell.

 

[MeepBeep]

I position the pipped area of the the egg however best to keep it at the very top, sometimes that will be straight up and down as if in an egg carton sometimes you can leave them laying on their side... Imagine the egg is filled with air and under water, how would you position it so that all the air comes out, that is how I lay mine, as this forces all the left over liquid in the egg to go away from the pipped area... What I do is cut a ring out of a paper towel roll or toilet paper roll about 1/2" tall and use that as a 'ring nest' for the egg, this allows me to position the egg pretty much anyway I want and it doesn't roll when the chick inside moves... Depending on egg size you might need to fold over part of the ring to make it smaller...

 

[Sylviaanne]

Great! My idea was to keep the babies head up so no liquid would drown it. Looks like we are on the same page. Thank you!

 

[Sylviaanne]

Ok, that baby hatched but still had the shell attached across it's back when I got up this morning. It had the outer membrane wrapped around it and dried so it was still in a curled position. I put it under the faucet and carefully peeled the shell and membrane off. The inner membrane had dried too but there was no blood left in it so I peeled it off. The baby had what looked like a bump on it's neck but I thought that it might straighten out in a few hours. I figured the curve in it's neck was from being curled in that position for so long after getting free from the shell. Now, several hours later, it looks much better but not straight like it should so the baby is still in the incubator so it isn't being pecked for being different. I left it last night with enough shell pulled away from it's beak that it should have been able to breathe until I could check it today.

kim27: Thank you for your wise words. I did just walk away and tried to forget it for a few hours. Later I took a pain pill and slept alllll night. LOL

Now, as for yesterday being a horrible, horrible day, it ran into today a little bit. One of my little Blue Silkies must have been at the bottom of the pile of chicks last night and suffocated. This is one that I bought last Saturday from Alan of Heartland at one of the feed stores locally. I still have one and one of the high points of yesterday was that I got to pick up 15 Silkie eggs from a local lady so even though I am sad to lose a Blue, I am excited to see if all 15 of the news hatch.

Please wish us luck! LOL Thanks, Sylvia

 

[kim27]

I wish you luck!

I had one that I helped zip this morning. He finally made it out.

We had one drown in the tiniest amount of water yesterday. Very sad!

 

[Sylviaanne]

Did your baby drown in the shell?
So sorry for your loss.

 

[kim27]

We had a small water dish for the birds, and he somehow drowned himself in it. We've re-arranged the incubator to try and prevent it from happening again.