Malpositioned call duckling- yolk on top

[SavvyKalash]

My call ducklings are way past hatch day (usually day 26, they are on day 30). I have lost a few since hatch day, so I've decided that I'm going to inspect the remainder. I have already done an eggtopsy on one of the ones that I lost and it was in an odd position and trying to pip through the side of the egg.


I could see one was continuously pushing on the air cell, but no internal pip. I chose to uncap the air cell and it looks like the duckling is upside down. The yolk is on top (visible from the air cell) and so is the duckling's butt.

Is there anything I can do for the duckling at this point? I put bacitracin ointment on the inner membrane to keep it wet, but I have no idea what else to do for it, because I don't even know where the duck's bill is.

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

Take some pictures of the outside of the egg, there could be a bruise spot. Where the bruise spot is you can make a safety hole. It sounds like your temperature is too low.

 

[SavvyKalash]

Take some pictures of the outside of the egg, there could be a bruise spot. Where the bruise spot is you can make a safety hole. It sounds like your temperature is too low.

There isn't a bruise on this one. There was on the one that I already lost, though.

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

Find a dark room and candle the pointy end, see if you can see a bill.

 

[SavvyKalash]

When I did the eggtopsy on this one, the bill was exactly where this bruise is.

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

View attachment 3016422
When I did the eggtopsy on this one, the bill was exactly where this bruise is.

Yeah that's how it works.

 

[SavvyKalash]

Yeah that's how it works.

This is the view from the top, I have candled and no light is passing through the egg at all. There are no bruises and no cracks anywhere else. Little baby is still breathing, but it has slowed down. I feel like I should make a decision soon, because I feel that doing nothing is definitely a death sentence. However, there are A LOT of active veins and a good sized yolk still.

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

It still has a lot of yolk to absorb.
After you open the eggshell up like that, they can't break through the inner membrane on their own to breathe.
Trouble is there are too many veins and too much yolk.
My advice is to wet the membrane with water and put it into a Ziploc sandwich baggie opened to get air but closed enough that the moisture stays in. It's going to need several more hours, maybe morning before you can help any more.

 

[SavvyKalash]

It still has a lot of yolk to absorb.
After you open the eggshell up like that, they can't break through the inner membrane on their own to breathe.
Trouble is there are too many veins and too much yolk.
My advice is to wet the membrane with water and put it into a Ziploc sandwich baggie opened to get air but closed enough that the moisture stays in. It's going to need several more hours, maybe morning before you can help any more.
View attachment 3016607

Thank you for your help. As I was checking on this one, I noticed a bruise on one of my other eggs and I was able to open up an air hole for it.

 

[SavvyKalash]

Well, I woke up this morning and the duckling had passed on (the one whose bill I couldn't find). The yolk was still unabsorbed.

My other little one that I made an air hole for is hanging in there and peeping. I candled it and it looks like there might still be some unabsorbed yolk at the top, so I suppose I should just leave it be for now.