Need Help ! Baby chick having trouble hatching.

[FarmerWife]

Hello everyone.
Yesterday one of our mama hens somehow managed to put a small puncture in one of the eggs she was sitting on. The hole is from the outside in, not inside out, so it had to have been the mama. The chick has been trying to hatch, but I think the hole is on the wrong side of the egg. The other chicks have hatched, and mama is off the nest, and left the egg there. I brought it inside, because she is showing no interest in trying to hatch it. I don't know what to do at this point, it seems the chick inside must be getting weak, less movement, less peeping. I have no incubator, and I have it on a heating pad with a damp paper towel. I don't know what to do, I'm afraid if I crack the shell any further it will die. I'm being real, I know this chick has little or no chance at this point but I have to try. Please help !!!

Dianna in NM

EDIT: Just went in to take a closer look, the hole is where the beak is, and the membrane is broken. There is more peeping going on now since I put the egg wrapped in a heating pad with the damp paper towel. So where do I go from here?? PLEASE HELP.

 

[HenchantedAcres]

If you can candle the egg to find out which end of the egg the chick is at, and see if he has internally pipped through the membrane, then you might be able to make a small hole in the fat end (air cell end) to give the chick a chance to breathe the outside air to allow his yolk sac to absorb, if he is positioned correctly.

 

[ocap]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/step-by-step-guide-to-assisted-hatching

 

[slivercove]

If you can candle the egg to find out which end of the egg the chick is at, and see if he has internally pipped through the membrane, then you might be able to make a small hole in the fat end (air cell end) to give the chick a chance to breathe the outside air to allow his yolk sac to absorb, if he is positioned correctly.

Yes follow her and if she has broken the air sac try and see if you can kinda help and how long has she been like this and how long has it been since the hen laid the egg

 

[FarmerWife]

Hi, This is what I have, I can see the beak, it's peeping, but not really moving a lot.

 

[FarmerWife]

It's 21 days on the first day of spring, the first two eggs hatched, then I don't know what happened with this egg, it had been poked somehow. This one became active yesterday very early in the morning, you could hear it peeping inside the egg. The hole is bigger now than it was yesterday, but not because of the chick I don't thing, it seems to me it's because of the movement of the mama and the other chicks. The others are fine, and eating, it's just this one. I'm at a total loss. This is our first time, so I'm totally inexperienced.

 

[HenchantedAcres]

I can't view your picture for some reason or another. Is the hole at the big or little end of the egg?

 

[FarmerWife]

The site won't allow me to put attachments so I copied and pasted it from my computer. The hole is in the large side of the egg.

 

[HenchantedAcres]

That's good! Do you have any idea how long the hole has been there? The chick needs at least 12-24 hours to absorb the yolk sac after breathing the outside air. If it has been long enough, you can use tweezers to gently remove more of the shell from around this hole. Try to leave the inside membrane attached to the chick, and if you see any blood then stop and moisten the membranes and rewrap him in the moistened paper towel for an hour or 2.

 

[FarmerWife]

The hole has been there since about 10 am yesterday morning. Were you able to see the picture after all? I wish I could attach the picture, but I'm not allowed yet. I can see it's little head, beak, and part of the chest. I'm afraid to pull off any more, do you think I should, or just leave it alone for a while?