Time to help hatching chick?

Hmm, that's odd. 48 hours after the external pip/last progress? These are ducks you're taking about?
Yep, one duck - just a couple days ago, and a chicken the hatch before that. A chicken back in my January hatch, also. Ended up losing that one. The veins don't seem to dry up/empty nearly as fast as I expect for the ones that have trouble - yet others go from external pip to escape in under 12 hours.

I'm still without explanation for why that might be.
 
Okie so I’ve managed to unzip the shell and leave the membrane inside in tact in the hope that she can do the rest, it really does seem like there is any yolk or blood vessels, it’s all chicken in there
 

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I ended up helping her with the membrane too, it was quite tough and I did half and she did the other half, she’s running around the incubator now. Thank you for all your help.

whilst I was putting her back, I noticed 2 of the other eggs that are due to hatch have almost light grey lines on them, they were fine the other day. Does anyone know what this means? And can I candle them on day 21 to see if they’re still alive?
 
Yay! I'm so happy that your chick is out of the shell and doing well!!! You did great assisting her!

It's perfectly fine to candle eggs right until hatch as long as you're taking precautions to keep any external pips safe. Once you're at 3 days until hatch, it's best to candle the egg as it lays. If you need to pick it up, that's ok, but I always keep them in the same position as they were laying so the chick doesn't become malpositioned or disoriented. With Call Ducks (I know you're not hatching call Ducks but I'm using them as an example :D) it's advised to candle to watch for the internal pip if you plan on making a safety hole, which is oftentimes necessary because they typically need a lot of assistance. So many people candle on hatch day and beyond.
Please let us know how it goes!

Edited to include example
 
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Yay! I'm so happy that your chick is out of the shell and doing well!!! You did great assisting her!

It's perfectly fine to candle eggs right until hatch as long as you're taking precautions to keep any external pips safe. Once you're at 3 days until hatch, it's best to candle the egg as it lays. If you need to pick it up, that's ok, but I always keep them in the same position as they were laying so the chick doesn't become malpositioned or disoriented. With Call Ducks (I know you're not hatching call Ducks but I'm using them as an example :D) it's advised to candle to watch for the internal pip if you plan on making a safety hole, which is oftentimes necessary because they typically need a lot of assistance. So many people candle on hatch day and beyond.
Please let us know how it goes!

Edited to include example
Thank you! I’ve just candled a few of them, and I couldn’t detect movement! The air sacks were all in tact. The one that i saw the most in, and I’ve attached a photo, I have a terrible feeling this little one is dead, what is your opinion? Is it reasonable to put a little hole in the air sack in this instance?
 

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I'm so sorry. I am the worst at detecting late term quitters. So you're on Day 22 or 23 now? Anytime I've not been 100% certain, I usually smell it to make sure there's not a huge possibility of the egg weeping or exploding and if not I put it back until I can get another set of eyes on it (do exactly what you did by taking a picture and asking on here).

@MGG we need you :)
 
I'm so sorry. I am the worst at detecting late term quitters. So you're on Day 22 or 23 now? Anytime I've not been 100% certain, I usually smell it to make sure there's not a huge possibility of the egg weeping or exploding and if not I put it back until I can get another set of eyes on it (do exactly what you did by taking a picture and asking on here).

@MGG we need you :)
Thanks for your reply! So I recandled them to be sure, none of them smell, and I could only detect movement in one of them. It was moving a lot too, I could tell if it was at the air sack yet or not. With the one in this photo. It’s still in the same position as this photo and not moving. I am so worried about taking any out that could potentially be alive in there.
Also, what should I do about this chick that is in the egg and moving but not pipped yet? It’s two hours off being day 22, I don’t want to jump the gun but I also don’t want to risk anymore dying.
Thanks again for your help!
 
Thank you! I’ve just candled a few of them, and I couldn’t detect movement! The air sacks were all in tact. The one that i saw the most in, and I’ve attached a photo, I have a terrible feeling this little one is dead, what is your opinion? Is it reasonable to put a little hole in the air sack in this instance?
That one looks dead to me unfortunately. Yeah, you can go ahead and make a hole in tbe air cell. Make it big enough that you can tell if the chick is still alive. Finger nail sized is about how big I make the holes.
I'm so sorry. I am the worst at detecting late term quitters. So you're on Day 22 or 23 now? Anytime I've not been 100% certain, I usually smell it to make sure there's not a huge possibility of the egg weeping or exploding and if not I put it back until I can get another set of eyes on it (do exactly what you did by taking a picture and asking on here).

@MGG we need you :)
I'm staying somewhere with terrible reception, lol. So I haven't even been able to check BYC until now! I've been going stir crazy not checking in. :lol:
Thanks for your reply! So I recandled them to be sure, none of them smell, and I could only detect movement in one of them. It was moving a lot too, I could tell if it was at the air sack yet or not. With the one in this photo. It’s still in the same position as this photo and not moving. I am so worried about taking any out that could potentially be alive in there.
Also, what should I do about this chick that is in the egg and moving but not pipped yet? It’s two hours off being day 22, I don’t want to jump the gun but I also don’t want to risk anymore dying.
Thanks again for your help!
I would go ahead and make holes in any unpipped eggs. Don't go any further than that though for now. Do holes pencil eraser or finger nail sized so you can see what's going on.
 
That one looks dead to me unfortunately. Yeah, you can go ahead and make a hole in tbe air cell. Make it big enough that you can tell if the chick is still alive. Finger nail sized is about how big I make the holes.

I'm staying somewhere with terrible reception, lol. So I haven't even been able to check BYC until now! I've been going stir crazy not checking in. :lol:

I would go ahead and make holes in any unpipped eggs. Don't go any further than that though for now. Do holes pencil eraser or finger nail sized so you can see what's going on.
Thank you so much! So I’ve put a whole in the top of this one that is moving around a whole lot in the egg, and then I repositioned the light and I think, possibly it’s internally pipped? I’ve attached a photo, what are your thoughts?
the whole is tiny tiny as, will this hurt it?
 

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Thank you so much! So I’ve put a whole in the top of this one that is moving around a whole lot in the egg, and then I repositioned the light and I think, possibly it’s internally pipped? I’ve attached a photo, what are your thoughts?
the whole is tiny tiny as, will this hurt it?
No problem! That one is definitely internally pipped. If your humidity us around 70% so that it doesn't dry out, it'll be fine.
 

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