June Hatch-A-Long

[minnehaha]

So I candled and only saw movement in one egg, I pipped them externally and 6/7 left were dead, two early quitters with shells to dark to see, one quit at the feather stage, one quit after lockdown, full grown, but hadn't absorbed the yolk, and 2 died after absorbing most of they old sack without internally pipping, one was for sure severely malpositioned, one was harder to tell, as it came out in the sack. The one still alive I've started assisted hatch, she wasn't cheering anymore, and when I opened the air cell the inner membrane was dry, I've taken off the entire air cell area to allow for me to place wet paper towel on the inner membrane, she is now chirping, and I'm waiting for the blood vessels to recede.

I'm rooting for her!!!!!! I hope she gets out ok, last hatch I only had one make it so I had to buy a 2 day old chick from Craigslist to keep her company. Crossing my fingers and toes for you!!!

 

[grlnamedsue]

I have three under my broody.  She has gotten up today..and one is pipped.  I went ahead and listened.  I hear chirping..in all of them.   So the others are internally pipped.
Did yours get up while there were pips?

 Has anyone else seen your broody get up while there were pips?  If these hatch out fine, I will wonder once again what the big deal is about opening the incubator during lock down.   ??

I didn't actually see her get up today at all, but she may have while I wasn't looking... I may have also made her nervous though, ha! I know yesterday and for the rest of her time setting she usually got up at the same time every day. I have to say though, for as much as I reached under her to lift and look, there was plenty of fresh open air circulating under there...however it was also pretty warm today, and I could tell mama was hot, and her bare breast was a sweaty mess, which I suppose made up for loss of humidity. I'm not familiar with incubators though as I've never used one, not to mention this was my first hatch, so I don't know what to say as far as that goes.

 

[jlynnp]

One little Quail out running around!!

 

[minnehaha]

I have now had 2 more hatch with a total of 3 black Orpington chicks, with 9 eggs left I actually had to assist in one hatch which was scary, but then I calmed myself with the knowledge that without any help she would die, with help, she had a chance. I still am hoping she lives, she had some yellow yolk that did not absorb and some that came out of her backside.

Incubator at 99.5 degrees, humidity at 65%

She unzipped last night, but at 3 pm this afternoon had not progressed. She was still peeping weekly but not trying hard, she was exhausted. I could see dried membrane stripes all along the zip line making it hard for her to push the shell apart and get out. Here is what I did:

I set up an operating table under a heat lamp with a clean towel laid down and let it warm up. I had a cup of hot water with a syringe, several q-tips, a tube of bacitracin ointment, and a pair of sterilized tweezers. I quickly reached in an got the egg out and took her over to the operating table. Then I used a q-tip with a bacatracin on it and applied it gently to the zip area and the area around her head and beak. Then I sucked up some warm water into the syringe and carefully dripped water along the zip line and around her head and beak. I waited for softening to occur. When everything was soft and moist I carefully used the tweezers to cut the strips of membrane that was preventing her from pushing the shell open. She also had a lot of dry membrane around her head and beak which I removed. After that she started pushing hard again with renewed hope and vigor. But, I could tell something was still stuck. Her wings and upper body were stuck hard to the shell, so I carefully picked at it with tweezers until i could see the where she was stuck. I hope she lives...scared...

After being unstuck she hatched herself out in seconds, but some yellow yolk came out of her backside. I quickly stuck her back into the incubator. She just flopped around looking awful, but after a rest she started crawl/fall/stumbling around. It's been an hour and she finally got on her feet, still wobbly but she is navigating around a bit.

The first to hatch is doing well, she arrived yesterday, the second one pipped and unzipped and was out in 30 minutes or less, then my third of course needed assistance. I can tell that the first and the one that needed help are pullets, no comb. The fast second one has a prominent comb so I would venture to say it is a little cockerel.

I hope I didn't shrink wrap the other chicks, I still have 9 eggs in there and hatch day was yesterday.

Operating table aftermath:

one little assisted fighter:

3 new babies resting:

 

[boyswillbeboys]

She's doing good, now that the veins have receded, I see the other chick keeps trying to encourage her out. She started to rotate as to zip, but with no shell there, I started loosening the membrane just beside her beak, then she turned her head back. All she needs to do now is kick out her her shell, the sooner the better, as the other one is getting pushy

 

[minnehaha]

She's doing good, now that the veins have receded, I see the other chick keeps trying to encourage her out. She started to rotate as to zip, but with no shell there, I started loosening the membrane just beside her beak, then she turned her head back. All she needs to do now is kick out her her shell, the sooner the better, as the other one is getting pushy

So happy for you, keep us posted!

 

[CaseyV]

One little Quail out running around!!

Have any of your Lavenders pipped? I have 1 with a small pip now.

 

[Roxannemc]

Wild hatch story happened today.
Baby hatched in a paper bag!
And God even preforms miracles for chickens.

(for those who read this last night or earlier sorry about the misspelling and mistakes i corrected it on my phone but i guess that version didnt apply and the other crazy spelling one stayed..now its corrected ...mostly I hope

Story...Night before last....
Mixed hen had a nest across the road in the cow pasture fence line .Yesterday my son notice 3 chick in with her..Lucky it was yesterday the 2 days before there was a deluge of rain!.
Brought her in at almost dark with chicks and eggs Busy today but at 3pm home and looked.
2 eggs had half hatched and I guess she stepped on them dead.
One dead baby that looked bad last night.
She had moved her live babies to far side of box.

Remaining 4 eggs were blood covered from a shell less egg she ate and cold so i moved dead chicks and cold eggs into a paper bag and put that into a plastic bag put outside by trash.

8 pm went out to feed chickens ..walk by some baby roos heard peeping looked..... not them couldnt figure it out then noticed the bag.!!
Tore it open here is a HATCHED CHICK!
Ran him in under its mom then checked other eggs in bag.
2 of the 3 cold eggs were peeping too!
Ran all 3 in under her.
If i hadnt passed the bag to get feed out of my car all would have died by morning........Well maybe .....check out below what happened today !!

On top of that where her nest was the street department came thru today and cut all the grass by the fence. !!! Lucky Mom and chicks! would have been mince meat. one day later

Ok now its 1;40 pm today thursday ..... they are still in a box in my bathtub
She hasnt been on the 3 cold unhatched eggs since i put them under her last night Im looking at them all every hour at least. so im sure.
She again moved with live babies away from 3 eggs.. Just now heard a loud hatching- chick - peep
Go look .....the egg that didnt peep yesterday and is all bloody outside and gross ..... hatched!

Im beginning to discount all the rules of hatching as these eggs have not been sat on since last night sometime so they are cold. ...and room humidity is about 40-50 % in my bathroom..yet this one hatched
im not giving up on the other 2 either now!
But HOW did they hatch when cold yesterday for some hours it was in the 80s outside.... but they were in shade.. and cold in the bathroom all night and today Its not a warm. room about 80 if that right now and was cooler this morning
IM really confused
Pic is of the chicks before this last hatched.Bloody Egg that just hatched on far left

 

[boyswillbeboys]

Second chick is out and safe, I moved the one to the brooder, as she was picking at the new one's umbilicus, they will be reunited in the morning, once this one fluffs up.

 

[MizzC1]

My classroom eggs have started to hatch right on schedule! One is out, and two more have pips. The one is so cute and noisy. It hovers around the one with the biggest hole. I can hear other ones chirping inside their eggs- so cool! Should be interesting to see what happens tonight!