question on how long not to open bator?

[Mom2Cool]

Ok so on Wed. 2/18/09 it was day 21 of incubation & I had 2 of 18 eggs pip. I am *still waiting for them to zip...... I've had 3 chicks pip & zip & since then I'd had another 4 eggs pip. The ones that have pipped since then have all looked like they[re about ready to zip in every sense of the word out of their shell but they've been that way for a really long time like since midnite last night. the ones that have already zipped out took me aback a bit because I didn't think they had nearly as much of a lead on getting out of thier shell as the ones I'm still waiting on now. Or it seems like they had this tiny hole as compared to the others that had a good cracked open line etc.

My question is when do I step in & try to help the ones struggling? I can still see movement &/or the rise & fall of their fuzz that's sticking out of their shell as they breath & a couple of them I can see their little beaks & they're still cheep cheep cheepin, but I'm starting to worry that I'm going to loose them in their shell. And then of course I am a novice so what does "helping them" exactly mean should I be helping them to get the rest of the shell off or just to pop their little heads out etc.? The chicks that are zipped & out already, have been helping the stuck ones along certainly & a pictures is worth a thousand words & so here is one for you all. this was taken at about 3:30 am this morning & is about the same now. The one in the far corner has the same crack as the one looking straight at the camera but it's facing the wall of the incubaor & so is not seen in the pic but that's the one that was the first to pip.

Tomorrow at 3:00 pm is 72 hours since the first chick has zipped & I'll need to take him out for food & water by then right? I'm starting to feel bad because I know they must be hungry etc. So what do you all think? I hadn't planned on anything until morning & actually I'd thought to try for some sleep tonight but I thought maybe I should post this here tonight to see what some of the experts think. Is this normal & should I be staying calm or is this time to panic or just roll up sleeves & help or what? the temp in the incubator is at 100 degrees & the humidity is at 71%

 

[Akane]

I go 24hrs after no progress on any egg. You can't go from the time the first one hatches because some take longer than others. One might only pip when it's ready to hatch and be out in hours. One might pip early and then sit for a day or 2 before it's finished absorbing the yolk. Then you might have an egg that was in a warmer or cooler spot in the bator (especially with a still air) or occasionally chicks for some reason are just ready to go sooner than others. By opening the bator any you also risk killing chicks and especially chicks that aren't as far along.

So as long as any chick is making progress, wait. If there are no new pips, no increase in pip size, no increased zips, no new hatches, etc... for more than 24hrs then I might slip an egg out to see what's up. It has only happened once though with more than 1 live chick left in an egg. Usually within that time all the eggs I was worried about actually hatch. Only 1 button quail hatch did I have some late hatchers for some reason where 3 came out a day after the rest. Other than that all but the occasional stuck chick have hatched without more than 24hrs between them. With the stuck chicks I usually pop the end off their egg when I go to remove all the others that have already dried. Dump the chick out and it's fine. I've had 4 now that just for some reason couldn't finish zipping or push the end off their egg but were ready to hatch. As long as they can breathe they will be just fine in their eggs until the others are done and then you can help them without risking the rest of the hatch.

 

[Mom2Cool]

Quote:
Ok so then technically while all the sizes of the holes in these eggs sort of look the same for a while they have increased in size they just haven't completely zipped out & so then they should all still be ok then right? It's the oddest thing because one of the chicks that zipped out was a good bit later when it pipped & I'd thought "oh good maybe that's another pip (I thought maybe the other chicks were doing the pipping for them) Anyway it was this tiny little hole & it was within hours & the little sweetie was outta the shell. Mean while the first 2 that pipped on *Wednesday* I'm still waiting on & each day while watching those 2 I'd thought "Ok this is it they're gonna pop now & yet here I am still kind of waiting. I've been trying not to panic over it but as I come to Sunday this will be 72 hours for the first chick & I think I'm going to have to try to slip him out of there.

Please cross your fingers these chicks finish popping by tomorrow afternoon for me huh? LOL And thanks I do feel better now because there has been increase in the size of holes/opening etc. & I think that's kind of a curious thing too because some are SO far along I'd expect them to truly pop right out but it's like they want the whole egg cut in 1/2 with an opening. It's been very interesting.

 

[jvls1942]

more than likely, if you help them, they die.. all the while they are absorbing the yolk, they are growing.. they do not need food until after they are out of the shell.
eventually they will just out grow the shell and be out.. I would leave them alone, no matter how long it takes..

 

[Mom2Cool]

Quote:
yes but that is part of my point in that the 1st one who's been out of it's shell has been out since Thursday afternoon...... The other one was Friday morning. You can see them in the picture... I imagine they're getting hungry & they have no more yoke. I know they have a 72 hour window from the time of hatching but tomorrow at 3:00 it will be 72 hours for that first chick.

& yes I get the others should go on their own etc. I also know I'm not suppose to open the bator & loose the humidity & dry out the shells etc.

 

[jvls1942]

Quote:
yes but that is part of my point in that the 1st one who's been out of it's shell has been out since Thursday afternoon...... The other one was Friday morning. You can see them in the picture... I imagine they're getting hungry & they have no more yoke. I know they have a 72 hour window from the time of hatching but tomorrow at 3:00 it will be 72 hours for that first chick.

& yes I get the others should go on their own etc. I also know I'm not suppose to open the bator & loose the humidity & dry out the shells etc.

yeah but, your first responsibility is to the ones that have already made it out.. No sense letting them die.. and if you have to open the bator and the rest are not hatched yet,,, here's what you do..

take out the hatched chicks and just put them into a box , that you have handy, temporarily..

have a fine spray bottle of warm water ready. just before you close up the bator give a few mists with the spray bottle and close up the bator.. your humidity should not be affected adversely ..

 

[Mom2Cool]

Quote:
yes but that is part of my point in that the 1st one who's been out of it's shell has been out since Thursday afternoon...... The other one was Friday morning. You can see them in the picture... I imagine they're getting hungry & they have no more yoke. I know they have a 72 hour window from the time of hatching but tomorrow at 3:00 it will be 72 hours for that first chick.

& yes I get the others should go on their own etc. I also know I'm not suppose to open the bator & loose the humidity & dry out the shells etc.

yeah but, your first responsibility is to the ones that have already made it out.. No sense letting them die.. and if you have to open the bator and the rest are not hatched yet,,, here's what you do..

take out the hatched chicks and just put them into a box , that you have handy, temporarily..

have a fine spray bottle of warm water ready. just before you close up the bator give a few mists with the spray bottle and close up the bator.. your humidity should not be affected adversely ..

Thank you.......