Should I help this chick hatch or it is ok?

[evers310]

I'm so thankful for this site! My fear of everything that could go wrong and because I'm new to this has had me a paranoid mess with this hatch! But thanks to you guys I now have a shred of confidence to counteract that anxiety and it just feels so much better. SO GLAD you guys are here!!

 

[GoldenSparrow]

all I can say is WOW!

 

[evers310]

Quote:
I think this might have gotten overlooked.. any advice and info on if the humidity gets too high and how it can possibly affect the un-pipped eggs at 80% (& plus)?

 

[yinepu]

Quote:
I think this might have gotten overlooked.. any advice and info on if the humidity gets too high and how it can possibly affect the un-pipped eggs at 80% (& plus)?

they should be fine.. usually problems come from too high humidity during incubation..

the air cell needs to become larger.. if during incubation the humidity is too high.. the air cell will remain small.. which is a bad thing if you are a chick who is trying to hatch

once the air cell is large.. the egg doesn't re-absorb moisture.. so it's highly unlikely that the chicks would drown
in your case it's probably best if the humidity is a bit high so the chicks don't end up gluing

I wish we knew for sure how accurate your hygrometer is.. considering you have had problems with dried membranes I suspect it's off by a bit

let me ask you this.. is the window fogged up?.. or did it feel like a sauna the last time you opened it?

 

[evers310]

Chick #5 just zipped in probably less than 10 mins and was out! same was true for #4! all on their own <3

As soon as these babies are finished hatching I'll check that hygrometer and let you know how off it was! I'm curious too!

No condensation that i can see on the windows and they arent foggy. When these last 2 hatched in the incubator i was expecting a surge in the humidity but nope, not really... still at 80% (it says..)

2 more pips that I can see and quite a few rockers!

 

[yinepu]

Sounds good!

 

[evers310]

I know!!!!

I'm SUPER excited!!

... and I ADORE this picture!!

/_______________________
\\

 

[evers310]

I'll be sure to check the hygrometer before my next hatch. This one was sent to me all the way from Alabama from another very sweet member of this forum because I was in quite a pickle trying to hatch 3 different sets of eggs in the same incubator with different expected hatch dates! Never again! Lesson learned! lol (Luckilly I had friend of a friend that had lots of professional incubators and took them on for me With the ones hatching now, I hadnt planned on having these eggs in the incubator but because of that mama bird it was just a last minute thing. The chicken lovers in these forums are just wonderful!!

 

[evers310]

So after having 2 hatch perfectly since I started this thread (and thx to you guys, saved 3 of my hatching chicks...) I have noticed that 2 of the 3 chicks that have pipped their eggs now have dry white membranes under where their shell has cracked :-/

Do they now need my assistance like the first few did? Or will they be ok even with the dry membrane for a while still? (they have been that way for probably 6 to 8 hours now... )I don't want their lives in danger if I can help it- but I have no idea how long they could stay safe like this. Because of where they are in the incubator I cant keep wetting their membranes with the straw like I did for that egg before.. but I could just take them out, work with them under that heat lamp in the hot brooder area and keep the membranes moist with water and q-tips till they're ready to hatch...?

 

[yinepu]

it's been a few hours since you posted.. any updates?

personally .. if the membrane only looks "white" and doesn't look tough.. I would hold off a bit and see if they can break through on their own.. if after a few more hours they haven't made any progress then I would intervene

have you opened the incubator since the last chicks hatched?