Please Help ASAP

[Chickenchickchick11]

Hello I am hatching chicken eggs it is day 21, and I noticed my egg has cracked the shell but the membrane is not poked through yet! The crack is also on the skinny end of the egg. The chick is moving I see the membrane move from time to time. I am not sure what to do please help! I am very new to this site! Is this normal? Do I need to assist?

 

[Chickenchickchick11]

This is the egg I don’t know what to do! Please help me!

 

[kwhites634]

Hello I am hatching chicken eggs it is day 21, and I noticed my egg has cracked the shell but the membrane is not poked through yet! The crack is also on the skinny end of the egg. The chick is moving I see the membrane move from time to time. I am not sure what to do please help! I am very new to this site!

Mother Nature's been on the job for years & knows what she's doing.

 

[Mvan42]

Keep an eye on it but give it time. The membrane does look like it is real thick/rubbery.

 

[Chickenchickchick11]

Keep an eye on it but give it time. The membrane does look like it is real thick/rubbery.

Thank you, I am probably just paranoid. I also keep seeing something poke at the membrane. It looks like the chick is struggling, do you think that is where the chicks beak is? Or is the chick upside down? Is there anything I can do to help it? Sorry for all the questions!

 

[Mvan42]

I am new to hatching myself. Not sure much help I can be. But from my experiences and what I have read here:
More than likely the chick is hatching at the wrong end of the shell. Which isn't impossible. It can take a long time I have seen up to 24 hours for a chick to hatch. That being said I lost a chick to a similar situation looked just like this because it couldn't puncture the membrane.
Watch and listen if it seems to be under stress chirping real fast. Then you can try first by wetting the membrane, just put a little water on your finger and touching the membrane. That should soften it enough for the chick to poke through. If that doesn't help. (I know there are different opinions but I am a helper) So take a pair of tweezers and gently puncture that outer membrane so the chick can do the rest. (I suggest watching videos on assisting chicks first.) I prefer to do as little as I need to do to allow the chick to do the rest. If you have to puncture that membrane just do it enough so you can see the beak. Allow the chick time to do the rest. Good luck

 

[Mvan42]

The egg hasn’t made any changes. When should I assist?

Watch for signs of distress.

 

[Mvan42]

When did the chick first pip?
How many eggs are to still hatch?
How long has it been?

 

[Chickenchickchick11]

I am new to hatching myself. Not sure much help I can be. But from my experiences and what I have read here:
More than likely the chick is hatching at the wrong end of the shell. Which isn't impossible. It can take a long time I have seen up to 24 hours for a chick to hatch. That being said I lost a chick to a similar situation looked just like this because it couldn't puncture the membrane.
Watch and listen if it seems to be under stress chirping real fast. Then you can try first by wetting the membrane, just put a little water on your finger and touching the membrane. That should soften it enough for the chick to poke through. If that doesn't help. (I know there are different opinions but I am a helper) So take a pair of tweezers and gently puncture that outer membrane so the chick can do the rest. (I suggest watching videos on assisting chicks first.) I prefer to do as little as I need to do to allow the chick to do the rest. If you have to puncture that membrane just do it enough so you can see the beak. Allow the chick time to do the rest. Good luck

Thank you!

 

[Chickenchickchick11]

When did the chick first pip?
How many eggs are to still hatch?
How long has it been?

It has been a few hours but it started on the bottom so I don’t know how long it was down before I noticed it. There are 4 eggs including that one. None have hatched yet. One has a small pip, one is barely zipping, and one has no change. Then there is the egg with the wonky membrane.