Overheated duck eggs!?! HELP!

[phoenixxflame]

I had 18 duck eggs, and all but three had hatched. The eggs had just externally pipped when I checked on them about 45 mins ago. When I checked on them, I pushed my lamp a little closer because it seemed slightly cold. When I just came back to check on them again, I felt them and they were VERY hot...My guess is around 115 F. I quickly took them away from the light and put them in front of a fan until they got back to normal temp. I put each up to my ear and only one I heard peep and peck the egg a bit. The other two I heard nothing, but when I candled it, it looked like one was moving, whereas the other, I couldn't find it's beak...Could it have died? I'm so scared and I feel so terrible for letting them overheat like that.

 

[Pyxis]

I hate to say it, but yes, you definitely could have killed them, and that's why it's not a good idea to try to hatch eggs under a heat lamp. If you heard one peep, that one is probably fine. The one you saw move may be fine too. The one that didn't move may have died. Temperature is very important for hatching eggs. You shouldn't be doing this by how things feel, you need a thermometer to tell you how hot things are. 104 F is the killing temperature - that hot or hotter for more than a few minutes and they die.

 

[phoenixxflame]

I hate to say it, but yes, you definitely could have killed them, and that's why it's not a good idea to try to hatch eggs under a heat lamp. If you heard one peep, that one is probably fine. The one you saw move may be fine too. The one that didn't move may have died. Temperature is very important for hatching eggs. You shouldn't be doing this by how things feel, you need a thermometer to tell you how hot things are. 104 F is the killing temperature - that hot or hotter for more than a few minutes and they die.

Even if they are 35 days old? and ready to hatch? (they are muscovies)

 

[phoenixxflame]

I hate to say it, but yes, you definitely could have killed them, and that's why it's not a good idea to try to hatch eggs under a heat lamp. If you heard one peep, that one is probably fine. The one you saw move may be fine too. The one that didn't move may have died. Temperature is very important for hatching eggs. You shouldn't be doing this by how things feel, you need a thermometer to tell you how hot things are. 104 F is the killing temperature - that hot or hotter for more than a few minutes and they die.

And also, I did have a thermometer, but it broke a few hours ago.

 

[Pyxis]

Even if they are 35 days old? and ready to hatch? (they are muscovies)

Yes, even if they are ready to hatch, getting too hot will kill them.