Question about chicks in the incubator

[FarmerWife]

Hello everyone.
I'm sure this has been asked many times, but I couldn't find it. I have eggs in the bator, this is only our second hatch here at home. The first chick has hatched, and it's now running around the incubator bumping into all the other eggs, some of which have pipped. Is it possible for him to hurt those eggs if they roll over? My last hatch, we had some chicks die after pip, and someone I know told me that if the eggs were rolled over while they were pipping they drowned inside the egg and I should have removed the chick as soon as it was out of the egg. That doesn't sound right to me, but I'm worried about the other eggs. Can someone help? I just got up from bed to check on the eggs and saw the chick romping in the bator, looks healthy as an ox, but still wet. SHell is off , no longer attached to his butt. If we have others hatching, I'd like to know what to do , thanks for any help you can give me.

Dianna
(Formerly Hickabilly Housewife-Changed Usernames)

 

[Ravynscroft]

You can leave the chick in there, all will be fine... knocking the eggs around isn't great, but it happens... the chicks would only drown pipping if your humidity was way too high throughout incubation... some will slip their hand in quick to grab chick and pop it in the brooder, but that risks shrinkwrapping the unhatched, so that is personal preference...
My advice, leave it, it'll be fine... good luck!

 

[FarmerWife]

Quote:
Okay, We now have three chicks, and one pip. The rest of the eggs have not started yet. These chicks are early, hatch day was not supposed to be til tomorrow. If I can get it to where there are no more pips would it be possible to remove them without risking the rest of the eggs?? I'm hoping the one remaining pip will hatch soon. The eggs are being rolled and knocked around pretty badly, they're very active chicks. Thanks !! Dianna

 

[Ravynscroft]

Yay, little fuzzlebutts!!!

If there aren't any external pips and you slip them out quick, then go for it... have a warm, wet paper towel or sponge to toss into the bator to boost humidity back up...

 

[FarmerWife]

Quote:
LOL !! Speaking of fuzzy butt's, two of them are Buff Orpington chicks, so major fuzzy butt's !! I went to try and sleep for a little while, and while I was sleepin, lol, one more hatched, and one more pipped, so we have four and a pip ! ) LOL I'm hoping that will be the last one for a little while, this hatch is turning out way better than the last one, thank God. Thanks for your reply, you've been a great help !! Dianna

 

[Ridgerunner]

That’s the way the professionals do it, let them roll around. At least with their operations, that is their best option. We are not professionals but that’s the way I do it too. Occasionally some of mine pip but don’t make it the rest of the way out. I don’t know how you can tell if the other chicks rolling it around caused a problem or if it was something else. I’ve seen many eggs that have pipped get knocked around a lot and still hatch. There are several possible causes of an egg pipping but not hatching. In all the incubation troubleshooting guides I’ve seen, I’ve never seen where the other chicks playing rugby with the unhatched eggs is a concern.

A chick absorbs the yolk so it can easily go three days or more without food or water. So there is no rush to get them out because of that. If you open the incubator when an egg has pipped you might possibly shrink wrap the chick. It does occasionally happen but not that often. Opening the incubator during hatch is a risk, but if I have an emergency inside the incubator I will take that risk. It’s a judgment call.

One emergency I had was when an egg shell half cupped around an unhatched egg so the chick inside would have trouble pipping if it tried to pip under that egg shell half. That’s the only time I’ve ever seen that happen, but when you deal with living animals it’s hard to know what to expect.

Congratulations so far. Sounds like it is going great.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

I agree with most of the advice you've already been given. The only thingI do differently is once I have more than one and they've warmed up and gotten their feet under them and are real active, as long as I don't have one zipping I pull them to the brooder. I run my temp high during hatch and use sponges so I don't worry too much about slippling the bator open.

Congrats on the hatchers!!

 

[DanEP]

I leave them in too but I hatch in egg cartons so they really don't get knocked around much. I have hatched without the cartons in the past and i really don't think the bumping around hurts anything. I know that if you have them under a broody hen their going to get moved around.

 

[kyexotics]

We let em roll to wake the others up!! They'll peep if they need us to flip them over!

 

[FarmerWife]

Well, we have a total of 18 hatches ! I wasn't able to pull any chicks out until I saw there were no pips, but by then we already had eight chicks runinng around inside the bator, lol. We did lose one, it pipped and only had it's little beak out, and died. Don't know what happened there. So all is great, except for a mishap this morning, we have a chick that fell into the chick waterer, it was very shallow, but it was on it's back and very cold. I blow dried it on low heat, and it just kind of laid there for a while onit's side. It's back up now, but it's breathing a little hard, so I wonder if it didn't take in a little water. I'm worried about my little peep. It wasn't in there long, I came in to check them, and left to put a little chick starter in the feeder, when I came back it was on it's back in the waterer. First time this ever happens with chicks at our house. I hope I don't lose my chick, does anyone have experience with this? I posted in emergencies, but only got one reply. Thanks all, have a great day!

Dianna
Formerly Hickabilly Housewife (Changed User Name)