Malpositioned/shrink wrapped duckling?! HELP!

[Tsam88]

#4

 

[Tsam88]

#6 the youngest with yolk ball

 

[Tsam88]

#2 This is the oldest... should I be concerned with this?
He detached himself from the rest of the egg after the yolk sack was absorbed, which you can still kind of see near his bottom, but it just looks like a wound. It’s not bleeding... I was given advice from a vet friend to our betadine on it...
but I still wanted to ask y’all what you thought.

 

[chickens really]

You proceeded so just wait and see if they survive..

 

[Tsam88]

One of those images of the baby in the cup with the last post was the youngest #6.

The one out of the cup is the oldest #2.

 

[chickens really]

I'm not actually sure why you opened them but what is done is done. Just wait now to see if they survive and DONT give them anything by mouth till they find their feet!

 

[CoturnixComplex]

UPDATE:

I think my incubator is off as you all said... I don’t know that I trust it to do anymore...
we will be looking for another before we try this again...

I also want to add that they were all in their eggs in very twisted positions... everything I have read on this site and others seemed to suggest the same...
So I believe that being the admitted novice that I am, I must have failed to rotate them correctly... if they are all like that then the only control would be me... along with these being my female’s VERY FIRST EGGS LAID.
So all in all I feel some guilt, and sadness, and I am hoping that these three make it and will be not only examples of this new learning experience but also hope...


So any advice y’all have on Duck in cups is much appreciated, and also, when should I take them out of the incubator? I will not wait for replies as I am doing research on that now, but I still would appreciate hearing from you all!
I will also send pics of all of them including our little buddy that didn’t make it and his yolk sack!

I'm really sorry to hear about all your troubles with this batch (my last hatch was pretty similarly unsuccessful, if for different reasons, and it's heartbreaking) but so glad you have a few happy duckies!

Getting an independent thermometer to double check the incubator temperature against is MUCH MORE IMPORTANT than getting a new incubator. They can all be faulty, in fact it is more or less expected they will be off by a bit. Seriously, just spend all the money you were going to spend on an incubator on a high quality set of temp and humidity monitors for your current one so you know how you have to adjust it. I have lucked out so far in that both my cheap ones run almost perfectly accurate but I still have separate thermometers on them in case that changes.

Laying the eggs so that the larger end is higher than the smaller end is also crucial to having success and fewer malpositions.

If both of those things are met and the ducklings hatch on time and correctly positioned next time, NO TOUCHING! For 24-36 hrs post-pip at least. The more you fuss with them the faster they dry out/stress out/etc.

Good luck with the little ones and your future batches!

 

[Tsam88]

I'm not actually sure why you opened them but what is done is done. Just wait now to see if they survive and DONT give them anything by mouth till they find their feet!

Because we lost another one this morning because his membranes had dried up and hardened around him... and the others were the exact same.
There is something wrong with my incubator.

I would not have done it if i didn’t think that was the only thing that was going to save them... every one of them had hard, brown membranes...

If I did something wrong I did... but from what I saw after finding another strong baby dead after pipping with its beak hanging out of the hole, I felt like this was last resort...

 

[Tsam88]

I'm really sorry to hear about all your troubles with this batch (my last hatch was pretty similarly unsuccessful, if for different reasons, and it's heartbreaking) but so glad you have a few happy duckies!

Getting an independent thermometer to double check the incubator temperature against is MUCH MORE IMPORTANT than getting a new incubator. They can all be faulty, in fact it is more or less expected they will be off by a bit. Seriously, just spend all the money you were going to spend on an incubator on a high quality set of temp and humidity monitors for your current one so you know how you have to adjust it. I have lucked out so far in that both my cheap ones run almost perfectly accurate but I still have separate thermometers on them in case that changes.

Laying the eggs so that the larger end is higher than the smaller end is also crucial to having success and fewer malpositions.

If both of those things are met and the ducklings hatch on time and correctly positioned next time, NO TOUCHING! For 24-36 hrs post-pip at least. The more you fuss with them the faster they dry out/stress out/etc.

Good luck with the little ones and your future batches!

Thank you!!!
The only reason I was thinking about getting another is for them to automatically rotate them.

But I will definitely take your advice!

 

[CoturnixComplex]

Because we lost another one this morning because his membranes has dried up and hardened around him... and the others were the exact same.
There is something wrong with my incubator.

I would not have done it if i didn’t think that was the only thing that was going to save them... every one of them had hard, brown membranes...

If I did something wrong I did... but from what I saw after finding another strong baby dead after pipping with its beak hanging out of the hole, I felt like this was last resort...

If you have done anything wrong it's all the same stuff we all did wrong at the beginning. I'm still learning! It gets better but to hatch you've got to just know that you're doing your best, none of them would exist if it weren't for you, any healthy babies you get are +1 to your record, and any that don't make it are a learning experience that will help you next time.