No Pip day 21?

[HonkABC]

I went to check on the eggs this morning to turn them, and one was chirping at me. I checked the other one and no pips. I did a water test today and it moved. Could it be malpositioned? Please help and thanks in advance. Also, it’s a barnyard mix.

Update: Chick has pipped the air sac, then externally pipped.

 

[nuthatched]

Are you counting the day after you set the eggs as day one? Is your incubator calibrated? If it's running cool, the eggs will be late. Never do the water test on suspected live eggs. Not every egg hatches in exactly 21 days.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

Nuthatched is right - 21 days is just the average. Some hatch later, or sooner, depending on many factors. If it's malpositioned, there's little you can do for it. Let them be for now. Resist the temptation to 'help', unless it has already pipped AND it's been 24 hours with no further progress.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I went to check on the eggs this morning to turn them, and one was chirping at me.

You're supposed to stop turning on day 18 (for chicken eggs). And keep the bator closed until hatch. Day 18 should have been your last candling to determine if they were still viable or not..

The chirping means there was an internal pip.. and that may be the first one to hatch. It can take up to 24 hours for them to unzip once they have externally pipped. Due to variations in temperature (EVEN in forced air bators with possible exception to the ones that turn the same direction always in a circle) there can be a wide hatch frame window. Especially being a first time with barnyard cross eggs.. after hatching nearly 1000+ chicks.. I KNOW my breeding lines, AND my bator set up and parameters are dialed in.. I move my eggs to a new position in the bator every day or two to combat ANY temperature difference (square bators) and keep them from adding up over time preventing any early or late hatchers, keeping my hatch frame at under 12 hours.

But here on BYC, with so many adventurers, power outages, non calibrated equipment (or depending on built in sensors), etc.. I've seen hatch day be as late as day 24. and as early as day 18 for chicken chicks.. I personally unplug my bator on day 22, but realize that's NOT an appropriate suggestion for MOST of my fellow enthusiast.

I absolutely loathe the whole water candle thing.. I never do it and never recommend it. I do consider it a good way to contaminate eggs.

Highly recommend patience!

You can't tell malpo from candling.. usually only once the chick's pipped the wrong end of the egg. Getting your incubation parameters right CAN impact this. (causes listed on page 53 of the link posted next)

My favorite hatch resource is quite technical and not much fun to read.. but still fascinating. Cause of specific incubation and hatch issues according to what day they happened or what symptom is seen start around page 51..

https://www.hubbardbreeders.com/media/incubation_guideen__053407700_1525_26062017.pdf

Happy hatching!

 

[BelovedBirds]

I went to check on the eggs this morning to turn them, and one was chirping at me. I checked the other one and no pips. I did a water test today and it moved. Could it be malpositioned? Please help and thanks in advance. Also, it’s a barnyard mix. View attachment 3262891View attachment 3262892View attachment 3262893

if its day 21, you should not be turning these eggs anymore. If it chirped, its internally pipped. By handling the egg, and water testing the egg, you're making it much harder for the chick to do their thing.
Water testing should only be done as an absolute last measure, to see if a chick is still alive. Otherwise it is needless danger. Not sure why it was done here.
They just need more time, they're on their own schedule. Do you have a calibrated thermometer? If not, you have to expect a porential late hatch.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I absolutely loathe the whole water candle thing.. I never do it and never recommend it. I do consider it a good way to contaminate eggs.

There is one circumstance I'll recommend it. If your eggs are way late hatching, it can be a last second desperation test to convince yourself that none are alive just before you toss them. Usually for people where that is the first or second time incubating. And way late hatching.

I agree, trying this before you are ready to toss the eggs is a risk of contamination. I don't know of anything to recommend it before they are way late.. I've only done this once. My niece was visiting and I did it to show her that last egg was not alive so she could better accept tossing it.

 

[3KillerBs]

My favorite hatch resource is quite technical and not much fun to read.. but still fascinating. Cause of specific incubation and hatch issues according to what day they happened or what symptom is seen start around page 51..

https://www.hubbardbreeders.com/media/incubation_guideen__053407700_1525_26062017.pdf

VERY useful link!

 

[Clodill4rel]

Nuthatched is right - 21 days is just the average. Some hatch later, or sooner, depending on many factors. If it's malpositioned, there's little you can do for it. Let them be for now. Resist the temptation to 'help', unless it has already pipped AND it's been 24 hours with no further progress.

Mine did an external pip over 24hrs ago and hasn’t made progress it only externally pip not internal I believe due to it being malpositioned it’s pip is on the wrong end…… should I do anything here is a pic ( these chicks were shipped and very badly saddled. It is cheeping….

 

[Clodill4rel]

They are both still alive one internally pipped and the other did an external yest without an internal…. We’re just waiting it out prob another 6 hrs to see and than I may assist with the external pip one dono yet….

 

[BelovedBirds]

Mine did an external pip over 24hrs ago and hasn’t made progress it only externally pip not internal I believe due to it being malpositioned it’s pip is on the wrong end…… should I do anything here is a pic ( these chicks were shipped and very badly saddled. It is cheeping….

it should be able to hatch itself despite malposition. They take longer when they miss the air cell like this, this external pip is the equivalent of the internal pip. So it will be a slower hatch than normal. Potentially up to another 24 hours. As long as the chick can breathe okay, there is no need to panic here at all.

Now I will offer advice, but you do not need to follow this. You should be safe to wait, and see if the chick can do it all himself. But here is some info in assisting anyway:
After 24 hours since malpositioned external pip, if theres no progress, if you are worried, you can chip away a tiny bit of shell to just slightly widen the pip. Then dampen any exposed membrane with coconut oil, stop any bleeding with paper towels.
If you see veins or yolk, stop. All you're doing is ensuring the chick can breathe well, and checking for veins. That is all. Not hatching them, not yet.

Then after another 24 hours you can re-assess the situation and begin to assist the hatch.
Most are able to hatch themselves without help, before this point.
Here is the Assisted hatching article

Good luck for your chick!