Lock down

[Desari]

I'm on day 20 of my lock down in the incubator. I put three fertilized eggs in yesterday on day 19 from a hen that refused to sit any longer on them . I had one peeping out , and had one that hatched last night but the one peeping out has not hatched should I hatch it out or should I keep the incubator in lockdown?

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

Welcome to byc, glad ya joind us...
Is this your first time with incubator hatching?
Have you candled to see if the one has internally pipped?
What is the temperature and humidity in the bator?
Are the eggs laying down or in a turnner?
Sorry for the questions but we need to know inorder to help..
Also, here is a great article on assisted hatching. Please take a minute or so and read thru just in case you need to assist, if you haven't ever had to do so...
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/
Best of luck to ya...

 

[IvanK]

Hi!

In my experience it is best to be as patient as possible. It's so much better to wait even a day or two past day 21 than assist unless you are 100% certain there is a problem. Every chick hatches on it's own time and just because some hatched early doesn't mean this chick will...it might hatch late.
Trust me, letting nature run it's course is way better than the feeling of assisting and needlessly killing a chick which hasn't fully absorbed it's yolk; knowing that you could have waited. The chick is likely to hatch on it's own, and likely to die if you help (unless there is an obvious problem... so worth the high risk). Nothing is certain of course but this is the advice I can offer.
If you must assist, I recommend you study this article first: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/step-by-step-guide-to-assisted-hatching.64660/

Wishing you all the best.

 

[Desari]

I have been hatching for quite a while but my thing is my other hen stoped sitting on her eggs and I put them in the incubator to hatch but one was peeping yesterday and now no movement and I'm on day 20 on lockdown so is it okay to open it to check on the one that's peeping?

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

I have been hatching for quite a while but my thing is my other hen stoped sitting on her eggs and I put them in the incubator to hatch but one was peeping yesterday and now no movement and I'm on day 20 on lockdown so is it okay to open it to check on the one that's peeping?

Has it internally pipped yet?

 

[Desari]

Has it internally pipped yet?

Yes

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

Ok... you can leave it be a bit longer or go ahead and do an emergency air hole in the aircell. Have you ever done this before?

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

Ok.. just claifing..yes you have done it already with this one or yes you have done one in prior hatches?
If you already done it on this one, check it and see if you can tell if its still moving around in there. If not, go ahead and do an emergency hole.

 

[Desari]

Ok... you can leave it be a bit longer or go ahead and do an emergency air hole in the aircell. Have you ever done this before?

Yes I have but I really did not want to because when I open my incubator on day 22 I have to help every chick out of their shell because they are stuck in their egg

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

How many do ypu have in there now?
If you do open it, make it quick and have a steaming hot wet cloth to stick in there as soon as you open it to take the egg out to work on it. This will help the humidity to recover quickly.