So, my first hatch all the eggs that made it past day 7 hatched. Since they were shipped eggs I was prepared to assist. Luckily, they were all doing a good job hatching on their own, right till the very end. From the first one to the last was about 12 hours. My early bird hatched a solid 8 hours before anyone else, and then they kind of went one at a time popping out of their shells. About half of them were dried off by the time one egg remained.
So the chicks got super energized and were running around the incubator like they were hopped up on too much caffeine. Then two of them collided and landed right on top of my last egg. I have a brinsea mini, so it’s round with a center post, kind of like a donut shape inside. Well, they cracked the egg wide open. The chick had pipped and had made a small external crack. It was really squashed, and the chick immediately started to push out of the egg. Its yolk was only halfway absorbed. I put the chick in what was left of his shell in a little paper water cup and covered it with my hand. After it realized it wasn’t getting out it settled back down and the yolk finished absorbing. Once that happened I put the cup on its side and let it “hatch” on its own. So whew, they all survived. But it could have gone so wrong if that yolk had popped.
Now it’s time again, my second hatch is supposed to happen on Saturday (or thereabouts, the eggs were shipped). I want to avoid this squashed egg scenario. So, is it ok to take the chicks that have hatched out of the incubator early? If they are still damp what do I do with them? Is it normal for them to break open eggs that are hatching, or was it a fluke? What’s the likelihood this will happen again? Do all chicks go through a manic running around phase, or was my first hatch special like that?
Please and thank you for any advice!!
So the chicks got super energized and were running around the incubator like they were hopped up on too much caffeine. Then two of them collided and landed right on top of my last egg. I have a brinsea mini, so it’s round with a center post, kind of like a donut shape inside. Well, they cracked the egg wide open. The chick had pipped and had made a small external crack. It was really squashed, and the chick immediately started to push out of the egg. Its yolk was only halfway absorbed. I put the chick in what was left of his shell in a little paper water cup and covered it with my hand. After it realized it wasn’t getting out it settled back down and the yolk finished absorbing. Once that happened I put the cup on its side and let it “hatch” on its own. So whew, they all survived. But it could have gone so wrong if that yolk had popped.
Now it’s time again, my second hatch is supposed to happen on Saturday (or thereabouts, the eggs were shipped). I want to avoid this squashed egg scenario. So, is it ok to take the chicks that have hatched out of the incubator early? If they are still damp what do I do with them? Is it normal for them to break open eggs that are hatching, or was it a fluke? What’s the likelihood this will happen again? Do all chicks go through a manic running around phase, or was my first hatch special like that?
Please and thank you for any advice!!
