URGENT!!! PLEASE HELP *Pictures Added*

[littlehenny]

Day 30 in the bator, I have one duckling that has been trying to get free from the shell since yesterday. I finally broke the shell off, but the membrane is so thick and it is stuck to the duckling. The duckling still has a loud peep.. Help does any one know what if anything I can do to help him.. There is a little blood when I try to loosen the membrane.

 

[duckyfromoz]

If there is still blood in the membranes- there is probably still a little yolk needing to be absorbed as well - peeling shell or membrane while there is still blood can result in a major bleed and in some cases the duckling can even die from that blood loss.. Since you have had the incubator open anyway- wet a face washer with warm water- wring it out a bit so its not dripping wet and wrap the egg in it leaving a space for the little one to be able to breathe. Apart from that- its just a waiting game while the blood and yolk absorbs.

 

[littlehenny]

It doesn't have any of the shell left on it. The membrane is so thick. Should I wrap it in a wet wash cloth and put it back in the bator anyway?

 

[duckyfromoz]

Yes If you can..But make sure the cloth is still warm when you wrap it. If there is no shell covering the membrane to hold it in place- the membrane tends to shrink and leave even less room for the little one to move. Wrapping it up will stop the membrane shrinking- and the extra moisture will help the little one move around more.

 

[littlehenny]

I have it wrapped. The poor little thing peeped loudly all night. I am afraid I have killed him. Thank you for the help. I am never going to incubate again. this is my 3rd time of trying, out of 47 eggs I have had 2 hatch with the 2nd hatch. I hope this one will make it. I have several other eggs in there that have finally piped, no movement or sound from them since yesterday. Again thank you for the help. The little guy I wrapped is starting to stretch a little more.

 

[duckyfromoz]

I wish you luck with this little one - and hope that you dont give up incubating completely... It is in theory so basic...set the temp- and provide humidity and after the required time- babies hatch. But there are so many variables. I have been raising ducks and geese for 25 years but only starting incubating last year. Its so much easier to use a broody- but the number of times I still had ducklings hatching in my bed or on a hot water bottle because the mother abandoned a nest or kicked out a half hatched egg for no reason.... Getting thing right in an incubator takes patients and a few attempts to get right.

What kind of incubator are you using?

 

[littlehenny]

I am using a little giant still air. I tried hand turning this time instead of using the auto turner. I thought maybe that was the problem.

 

[jenjscott]

It sounds like a humidity issue when they pip but don't hatch. With your little one in the membrane what I do if there is no active bleeding from the membrane, is take a cotton ball or piece of tissue and some warm water and find an edge to the membrane and start gently wiping with a saturated tissue to peel the membrane. It takes a lot of water, dip and wipe, dip and wipe. The water will resaturate the membrane and it will peel off. You can't get in a hurry it will pull out the feathers. I even very carefully adjust a small stream of water and hold it in thestream of water.

 

[duckyfromoz]

Hand turning for ducks eggs is usually more successful. I use incubators very similar to the Little Giant- And have had varied hatch rates. My first ever attempt was good - but not great. I used my own eggs in the auto turner. The next lot was mostly posted eggs- and I was devastated with the results - and that was when I stopped using the turner.. I have had dry hatches- and some that were all wet and gooey... And a batch of crested duck eggs where I didnt get a single one to hatch. Something else I find helps alot is to spray the eggs with a very fine mist of water. I dont measure the humidity in my incubator for every hatch - I watch the size of the aircells now to monitor if they need more or less moisture.

 

[chickboss]

Quote:
This is very similar to what happened with our one little call. Check the wash cloth often, I had to rewet mine every two hours. For me, from the time I intervened to the time that she was free of the egg completely, was about 48 hours. Good luck, fingers crossed for your little duckie!