Pipped on wrong end!

[MadamContrary]

It is clearly alive and breathing still but, I am concerned about it pipping more towards to pointy end, almost in the center of the egg. When do I assist and is it the same procedure as for chickens?

 

[SavageChick]

Not an expert at all on wrong-end hatching, but I had a button quail from one of my hatches do this. Watched him for hours, worried sick. Finally went to bed at around 1:30am, and he decided to break out some time thereafter, before waking up in the morning. The length of time was somewhere between 14-18 hours after its first pip, which was the longest any of mine have ever taken.

 

[TwoCrows]

Just as SavageChick as mentioned, they can get mispositioned during lock down. That is the purpose for lock down, is to allow the chick to get into the hatching position. But sometimes they don't.

Just let it be. Don't assist it out. You will be asking for trouble. Chicks helped out of the egg generally don't make it, and many times it is you that have to put them down. So let nature take it's course here. They can also hatch out just fine even though they are not where they are supposed to be in the egg. Good luck!

 

[MadamContrary]

Ok, thank you both, I will just leave it be and see what happens. Hope that little fuzzbutt gets out though!

 

[SavageChick]

I'm kind of torn on the "assisted hatching" technique. I did this once with my first batch of button quail, and I dearly regretted it afterwards. The chick that I "helped" ended up having multiple issues and died on the second day. Yet, there are more experienced people who have done this successfully with no problems. If you intend to raise your birds for breeding, you want the strongest and most viable chicks, and not ones who cannot hatch normally on their own. This is the reason I won't do it again with mine. On the other hand, if you intend to save one only as a source of meat to butcher and sell later on, then you may have more reason to help assist it. Here is a link that you might find helpful if you do decide to assist.

 

[MadamContrary]

After reading that article (and really going with my gut action-wise), I was able to determine it was probably malpositioning due to shipping related wacky air cells. It had not made any progress beyond that first Pip so I went ahead and chipped away at a bit of shell and put it back in. Hopefully it can manage the rest now.

 

[James the Bald]

Savage,
I checked out the link, and it just re-iterated my view to "never' interfere. There is a reason "nature" will allow many to hatch and one to die; survival of the fittest. The most important thing I read that was mentioned throughout this article was, "Leave it alone".
I won't touch an egg that seems like it needs help. It has to do with the humidity. If you were to take that egg out of the incubator, the egg cools and the membrane dries out. You make a little crack and put the egg back into the incubator. As the egg heats up, so does the membrane and it starts to shrink wrap the chick. So thinking that you're helping out, your actually hurting this chicks chances. Then, as mentioned earlier, that chick dies a few days anyway.

 

[SavageChick]

I wasn't necessarily recommending it, especially on chicks one intends to later breed, but only provided the link that shows how to help if someone makes that decision to try this method. I'm curious to know how the chick is doing now, Any updates?

 

[MadamContrary]

It's doing well so far, I had only chipped a bit of shell horizontally to give a bit of wiggle room and now it has fully turned and zipped about 90% of the way, and chirping like mad. The real issue is keeping the membrane moist! More eggs started pipping last night and today so I am cautiously optimistic at this point. I think understanding that when a chick pips away from the air cell it is not ready to hatch yet, that was intended to be the internal pip so it could acclimate to air and finish up absorbing all those vessels and what not. So I think intervening is dangerous since I am now the one to keep that membrane wet, if it dries I have a stuck chick. But, I did give it a better chance at any rate. These eggs were terribly miss-handled in by the post, the box was leaking when I picked it up. Being that the air cells were to terrible I don't think I will do shipped eggs again, really a sad waste of money and life :c

 

[MadamContrary]

Well here she is plus a mate! I did have to help remove the membrane but so far so good. Hoping to see them fluffer up and brooder ready in the a.m Incredibly stressful stuff.