Unexpected chick colour and Annoyed wife!

[Outbackchick]

Hello.. Over the last few days our RIR x White leghorn x have been hatching.. We have 14 so far

and I was surprised to see we got a little black chick with all the rest being what we expected with being yellow with a hint of a light reddy brown in some spots but this one is black with white chest and tips of wings.. Was thinking this must be a throw back to the 3/4 white leghorns but thought white was the dominate gene?? This is my first hatch and new to this so is it unusual?? It looks like a little australorpe

.. Also I have a egg that when it pipped I noticed some blood on the membrane so I just left it as I knew I could still hear it in there.. I got up this morning to discover my husband had picked a fair bit of the shell away to help it ( I had told him not to do this) now it's still moving but still curled up in the membrane.. It's stilllike this a few hrs later and humidity is high enough but I can still see a fair bit of blood around it.. Let's just say I wasn't very happy with hubby

but wanted to know if it should still be ok? I won't open the bator and I'm hoping no more hatch in there until it decides to come out as 1/3 of it is exposed.. Thankyou

 

[MamaMarcy]

Keep the humidity up to snuff, nd if you need to soak a paper towel in warm wter and wraap the exposed chick to keep it moist....then leave it to do it's own thing

 

[GrannysRoost]

I hope it's wrapped in a paper towel with beak exposed? I had to help one a few days ago, no one else was pipping and I took the hatched out, so while I was doing that I wrapped the egg in a hot damp towel to pick enough shell so I could see it, then had to pick a bit at the membrane because it was struggling with the beak. Once the beak was exposed just enough she was poking it in and out, I wrapped in hot wet paper towel, leaving the beak part exposed to breath, and when I put back in the bator tossed in a hot, wet washcloth to up the humidity fast. The membrane around the beak hole dried over night, but the next morning she was zipping through it. If I wouldn't have picked just that little bit at the membrane, not sure it would have had made it even though it originally pipped externally in the wrong end of the egg.

 

[NanaLantana]

I'm sure chick hatching is an exact science, but I didn't know that when I was a kid! I usually helped my chicks hatch, being an impatient 8 yr old, and nobody told me not to do it. I never killed one, either. And never had an incubator, I just stole them from under the hen when they were peeping, and opened them up. Then I put them back. They came out fine -

Your mystery chick sounds more like a barred rock. If so, that's a really good one! Nice heavy egg machines. (unless it's a roo)

 

[Outbackchick]

Poor this is just curled up in there.. I can see it's head and it could get out if it wanted but just tucked under still.. I had another look and there is no membrane on it either and fully exposed on one side.. It's breathing and it's time for it to hatch.. I have 6 other eggs in there that have not pipped yet. Thanks for your replys

nanalantana that's funny.. I just hope the poor little bugger will be ok.. Really a barred rock? I'll have to look that up

 

[DMRippy]

Leghorns from Hatcheries can be mixes. Some have some barring hidden in the white. I don't think the white in Leghorns is dominate... could be wrong. I know you can't use them for sexlinks.

Unless you have Barred Rocks, it is not a barred rock... Is there a spot on the head? that would indicated barring but would not change the breed to barred rock. Sorry.

That chick, might have something wrong with its legs. I had one that we hatched because it was making no progress and it could not walk. I wish I had helped sooner. It was shrink wrapped and might not have had leg problems if I had helped sooner. It did die. I have hatched several and have only lost the one from hatching problems and I just didn't help soon enough. I had read DON'T help, but I just can't sit and watch them die when I can help.

 

[Outbackchick]

I brought my 3/4 white leghorns from a lady that breeds lots of different breeds.. I also got a rhode island red cockrel from her which is now the mothers and father of these chicks.. All the other chicks are variating shades of yellow/ white/ light reddy brown

not white on head but has grey shades on chest with yellow bum feathers.. Also has a black beak.. Very cute

it came from a browner colored egg that we sometimes get from our 3/4 white leghorns.. So should I go ahead and get it out or just leave it come out when ready??

 

[DMRippy]

Quote:
8-12 hours is my limit. I get them out.

 

[Outbackchick]

I just went ahead and done it and just aswell I did as it would not of been able it.. It was stuck down so tight!! Bits wrapped around holding it's head down.. It was gross but I put it on a heat pad and got to work

I left the umbilical cord still hanging and put it straight back into the incubator.. It's laying there recovering but still breathing strong

that was a pretty awesome experience

 

[DMRippy]

Quote:

Good luck! Toothbrush to get the yucky stuff off if needed, but I find they take care of that too.