new chick

[RAWR]

when chicks first hatch, do they lay there and dry off?

 

[canada-goose]

Yes, they do.

 

[chickenboy21]

when my chicks hatch i usually leave them in the incubator till they are completely dry... so yes when chicks hatch they will lay there too dry

 

[RAWR]

ok :3 and does the u-cord bleed?? it was havinbg trouble getting it off and my mom helped it.. is that ok??

 

[RAWR]

oh and we didnt have a bator, we got our first broody and they just started hatching today after school. theres 3 so far, 2 were born a few hours ago, and one just hatched

 

[Muggsmagee]

You should refrain from helping the chicks...it can be very difficult to do. Even though helping them can be necessary, it can do just as much damage.

Without having a picture to look at, what you might be talking about are 2 different things...sometimes the membrane can still be attached with "live" veins...if you cut those, the chick can bleed out if the veins are still fresh (usually a grouping of 3 veins to the belly). Sometimes the chick can stick to the shell through what appears to be it's naval. You might even see discharge. I've had various stages of this, and depending on the severity of the opening depends on how your chick will fare. Most of the time it dries up/scabs over and the chick heals just fine. You can have the yolk and or guts come out of this opening, too, and the chick will likely die...due to blood loss or infection.

Try and remember that when you hatch your eggs, let them be in the incubator for 24 hours before you "help" them. The temperature change alone can prevent them from hatching properly.

In the beginning, I thought I "had" to help them...hatching was SO stressful. There are some I know I've saved, and others I've likely weakened and killed from too much interference. I now wait 24 to 36 hours from when the first one pips before I even open the incubator. I will take the chicks out, put them in a brooder, remove the empty shells, and if there are a few eggs left I will candle them and maybe help them out a little. We've had a few deformed chicks that didn't hatch on their own...we helped them out, then had to cull them later. (They couldn't walk around due to double jointed legs.) I now wish I left them in the shell.

If you are uncertain as to what the stuff is near the "naval"...take a picture and post it. If it looks like a vein (red) leave it only if it looks BRIGHT in color (fresh)...otherwise it is fine to cut. If it looks like "snot"...sort of gunky and messy...that's fine to cut off.

Have fun with your chicks!

 

[Muggsmagee]

Quote:
The broody is another factor all together...the chicks are best left with her...she will help them finish the job (stay with them). I've had one broody hatch eggs, and she abandoned them to sit on another nest. Most likely, though, the hen will stay with her babies, and the ones that "don't make it"...it's probably okay anyway (dead, deformed, or not fertilized).

 

[RAWR]

we took the chicks away from her because she was pecking them and she just upped and left

its not bleeding anymore and its starting to dry off

 

[Muggsmagee]

Quote:

 

[RAWR]

update!!1
the chick we 'helped" is healthy. Four toes, two eyes, two wings, clean legged, cheeping alot, very lively.
only thing wrong is that he has spradle(sp?) legg. I think my mom has it all taken care of.
But the other two are very healthy, and in good shape