Please advise... hatching chicken seems to have sticky chick but also yolk

[chelseagilgore]

Hi there

I am hatching chickens and have one healthy one that came out on day 21 quickly. The other pipped at day 22 and started zipping at day 23. He was leaking yellow goo but he hung on for a good 36 hours. He finally pushed open last night (hour 36) and is now just sitting in the half open egg trying to get out. He has been in that position for 10 hours now (hour 46 since hatch) and is drying out despite wrapping in warm wet paper towel and keeping humidity up. He is coated in a glue-like substance which leads me to think sticky chick. Everyone says to give them a warm bath so I got my materials ready and took the egg out. Once I could see inside I realized it looks like he still has some unabsorbed yolk on his belly.

So my question is: Do I take him out of the egg he is glued in and give him a warm bath? Or do I keep him in incubator for longer to let him absorb the yolk?

My humidity was definitely too high during the first two weeks. I live in the PNW and natural humidity didn't drop below 45% so I did a "dry" incubation. The airsacs still didn't grow as much as I anticipated, which I think resulted in a lot of dead chicks (only 2 pips/zips out of 7 fertilized and developing eggs).

 

[chelseagilgore]

Update: he's wiggled out of the egg and has a bloody line from his bottom to the egg. He's also very lethargic and weak. He's not fluffing up due to the "glue" around his body and seems to have trouble lifting his head.

I gave him some warm sugar water which he gobbled up as well as he could. I had to lift his head for him but he was very eager. He's in the incubator wrapped in a warm wet paper towel.

Any advice appreciated.

 

[chelseagilgore]

Update: Just gave him a warm water soak to get the crusties off followed by a little blow dry (which he hated). His navel is definitely open. What can I do to help it close/prevent infection? I have him back in the incubator but am worried since it's a hot, wet, and dirty (other eggs) environment. Will it close on its own?

 

[chelseagilgore]

Update: The chick is still alive. I've been alternating qtip warm water baths with dry toothbrush scrubs to help get the crusties off. Belly still open and still not walking. Looks like a leg deformity of some sort? They can't push off the ground, the leg just kicks the face on the ground. Do I euthanize?

 

[Henriettamom919]

Gosh, I don't know but I'm sorry you're going through that.

I'm no expert but it doesn't sound good so just keep your baby as comfortable as possible. I live near Seattle and a friend of mine had only two chicks survive a clutch of ten. Humidity here makes it hard to regulate incubators. She had most of her chicks stuck to their shell.

 

[chelseagilgore]

Gosh, I don't know but I'm sorry you're going through that.

I'm no expert but it doesn't sound good so just keep your baby as comfortable as possible. I live near Seattle and a friend of mine had only two chicks survive a clutch of ten. Humidity here makes it hard to regulate incubators. She had most of her chicks stuck to their shell.

I'm in Seattle as well and this is my second year of having a poor hatch. I think I have to do it earlier in the season when the humidity is lower. This is awful to witness.