Urgent Help Please, Bleeding Chick in Egg

[catlover8976]

I just went out to check on my chicken's eggs under my broody and found one chick finaly hatching but may have been stepped on or hurt by the mother as there was a fair bit of blood. I'd been incubating eggs also so I've placed it in the incubator. I can't see any of it's features appart from a few feathers and there's a lot of blood around where the membrain is broken. There's no cheeps or sounds coming from the egg but it is constantly moving. Should I try and clear the egg so it can breath or just leave it and hope for the best?

 

[SavvyPractical]

You can try cornstarch as a blood stop. In my experience this only works for the veins you have access to. Good LUCK!

 

[catlover8976]

I don't have access to any veins, the membrian seems to be already quite dry and the movement is slowing. I still haven't heard a single sound from it. Is it advisable to use a needle or a pin to make a hole in the airsack? Where the membrain is broken seems far too far back and was probably broken open by the mother's foot. I desperatly don't want to loose this chick it's the first one we've had all year, all other attempts failed. Would clearing up the blood with a papertowl be okay?
My worst fear is that the chick can not breath.

 

[SavvyPractical]

You can definitely use a paper towel or cloth to pres and stop the bleeding. when all things go "right" the chicks head should be on the lowest side of the aircell, thats textbook so it could be anywhere. I would get the bleeding stopped as best as i can, candle the egg to look for the air cell. Outline it in pencil. Start from the top and gently poke a hole there. Start peeling back the shell, but stay well away from the line you drew until you get a better look at what is going on. Until the veins draw down there isn't much you can do. bleeding further down in the shell doesn't necessarily mean drowning baby. The head could be well away from that location, and pipped in the aircell.

 

[SavvyPractical]

I meant to add that your goal is to ONLY remove the shell at this point, not the membrane. Its likely that there will be many vessels still full of blood up there. You can wet the membrane with warm water to get a better look at the situation.

 

[catlover8976]

I managed to look inside the aircell and it's head doesn't seem to be near it, it looked like it made a pip there in the shell at once stage but made another in the middle of the egg and then unziped the membrane there, causing it to bleed. It's no longer bleeding but there may be blood inside the egg I can't get to. There's no membrane brake in the aircell so it's not able to get any air and I have no idea where it's head is. Under the dry membrane there's a very thin gloopy membrane covering the chick, what is this? Is it okay if that gets disturbed? Should I just wait and hope it kicks it's self free? Though it's responding less and less to outside noises and lights.

 

[catlover8976]

Great, mother hen stood on another egg possibly? This one hasn't had the membrane broken but it's a large crack on the side of the shell. Again no cheeping at all, is it possible for them to have simply not pipped yet or could they both be facing round the wrong way? Put that one in the incubator as well to keep and eye on it. The other egg with the large gap and split membrane isn't moving much but will respond to a gentle touch. I'm hoping they'll be okay till tomorrow.