Membrane looks brown peeping and movement has stopped help!

[K.Riggs]

Well, hopefully its smooth sailing from here. You sure do a number on your wallet getting Cayuga eggs there!

Well they were $30 for the dozen and $20 shipping from interstate i'm on an island so shipping is always expensive along with fuel and power

I chose to compensate the lovely lady who was kind enough to drive over an hour out to the farm and get them and package them for me $30 for her petrol and time.

By the way any advice on this..the strong one is picking on the new one because he is small and weak and the other one was alone for 24 hrs. He is really bullying him so I have had to put him in a container in the brooder under the heat pad. I'm taking him out hourly to cool and get fresh air and so it doesn't get too humid under there but this isn't optimum if his leg issues which I agree at this point he has stay he is just going to get totally picked on by his sibling! If I have another hatch i might put the new one and the weaker one in another brooder.

 

[Josh L.]

Well they were $30 for the dozen and $20 shipping from interstate i'm on an island so shipping is always expensive along with fuel and power

I chose to compensate the lovely lady who was kind enough to drive over an hour out to the farm and get them and package them for me $30 for her petrol and time.

By the way any advice on this..the strong one is picking on the new one because he is small and weak and the other one was alone for 24 hrs. He is really bullying him so I have had to put him in a container in the brooder under the heat pad. I'm taking him out hourly to cool and get fresh air and so it doesn't get too humid under there but this isn't optimum if his leg issues which I agree at this point he has stay he is just going to get totally picked on by his sibling! If I have another hatch i might put the new one and the weaker one in another brooder.

If you do put the weak one and the new duckling, be careful, the weak one might pick on the new one, as the youngest usually tend to be picked on and put at the bottom of the pecking order. Give him some time to get his strength together, and try to reintroduce him to the older chick. That's what i did with quail, and if the weaker one can get himself together enough to smack the bigger chick up a bit, he'll quit picking. do they both have access to food and water in the single brooder?

 

[K.Riggs]

That's terrible! I can't stand people who hurt/kill animals without reason. Smh. At least you don't have the predator issue, which is really nice. If you can find a BIG rooster, maybe of RIR or Australorp breed, you'll be better able to protect hens from ariel predators, as a large rooster sometimes will take on a predatory bird, and at the very least he will always be on the look out to keep the hens safe.

Actually i got my geese for the purpose of warning and intimidating birds of prey and so.far I have not had another one on my property touch wood! I have two roos and they are better than the hens at predator awareness but still kind of crap lol

 

[K.Riggs]

If you do put the weak one and the new duckling, be careful, the weak one might pick on the new one, as the youngest usually tend to be picked on and put at the bottom of the pecking order. Give him some time to get his strength together, and try to reintroduce him to the older chick. That's what i did with quail, and if the weaker one can get himself together enough to smack the bigger chick up a bit, he'll quit picking. do they both have access to food and water in the single brooder?

The little guy isnt eating or drinking yet because he just finished absorbing his yolk this afternoon. I have been taking him out and drip feeding him electrolytes as I will continue every few hrs through the night. Then tomorrow I will sort out a better dividing system so he has food and water. You know what's funny, his sibling is crying for him and trying to find him but then when he does he immediately attacks him with light pecking all over.. Go figure, the little weak guy is already starting to fight back and peck him so I think a few days will go a long way to evening the score. He is a decent amount smaller though. He is actually so tiny.

I have been stretching his legs and encouraging him to stand on his feet properly by taking a little of his weight and nudging him forward slightly so.he takes a correct little step.

 

[Josh L.]

The little guy isnt eating or drinking yet because he just finished absorbing his yolk this afternoon. I have been taking him out and drip feeding him electrolytes as I will continue every few hrs through the night. Then tomorrow I will sort out a better dividing system so he has food and water. You know what's funny, his sibling is crying for him and trying to find him but then when he does he immediately attacks him with light pecking all over.. Go figure, the little weak guy is already starting to fight back and peck him so I think a few days will go a long way to evening the score. He is a decent amount smaller though. He is actually so tiny.

I have been stretching his legs and encouraging him to stand on his feet properly by taking a little of his weight and nudging him forward slightly so.he takes a correct little step.

That should be good for him; both the stretching and the fact that hes already fighting back. Little guy sure is a survivor, isn't he? Maybe you could put a small screen between them with a hole cut out the bottom just big enough for the water/food dish to stick out on both sides? Then they could see one another, and there wouldn't be a risk of the bigger duckling hurting the little one.

 

[K.Riggs]

That should be good for him; both the stretching and the fact that hes already fighting back. Little guy sure is a survivor, isn't he? Maybe you could put a small screen between them with a hole cut out the bottom just big enough for the water/food dish to stick out on both sides? Then they could see one another, and there wouldn't be a risk of the bigger duckling hurting the little one.

Excellent idea I will take that

And yes so far he is a survivor. I will not get ahead of himself though I have read so many positive stories like his only to get to the end of the thread to discover they died a few days later when they were eating and drinking and seemed fine! I will just be happy each and every time I fish around in heat pad cave and pull out two wiggly warm fluffy ducks lol.

 

[Tavia Rose]

You did a good job!! Especially the "surgery". I have two cayugas, both girls, named Samurai and Dwayne(it stuck). I hope they grow big and strong. Mine are so smart they used to follow me out of the bathroom walking lol. I have 4 duck eggs in my incubator now and I'm afraid but,I'm gonna do it. This gave me hope.

 

[DwayneNLiz]

Oh awful I am so sorry!! In Tasmania we literally have no predators other than hawks and domestic dogs if they were to get out. Not even foxes like mainland Australia. I had one Araucana pullet taken by a hawk and a few weeks later a car of young hoons hit her sister on purpose with their car. I don't like to lose them :'(

thats crazy! but really neat that there are no predators!
can you order meat birds like cornish cross? or their eggs? then maybe make a more sustainable meat bird by crossing them with something else

 

[K.Riggs]

thats crazy! but really neat that there are no predators!
can you order meat birds like cornish cross? or their eggs? then maybe make a more sustainable meat bird by crossing them with something else

that's exactly what I was thinking, a Cornish x mixed with what? Leghorn or something?

I like the idea of processing not too long after they start crowing. A barn full of roos at 5 am for months doesn't excite me..

 

[K.Riggs]

@Josh L.

His leg problems are worse today. One just slips out to the side, essentially he can't walk.

I put this little spraddle leg device on, seems to be really helping.

So no pipping today which is day 28. Either they are going to be a bit late because I had to open the bator so many times assisting the three shrink wrappers or they are shrink wrapped too. So I'm thinking of checking for internal pipping tomorrow and checking the status by removing a little of the shell at the air cell to look for shrink wrapping, veining etc . I mean if there is nothing on day 29 they are all doomed anyway so I may as well try to save a couple? Thoughts?