Weak duckling with protruding belly button????

[erin272]

Just wondering if my duckling has any chance....has anyone had one hatch with the protruding red belly button with tissue sticking out and have it survive?

 

[erin272]

Also, do you just leave the belly alone to dry or should I put something on it? Will the tissue/belly button go back in?

 

[Baylor]

keep the baby in the incubator. put some corn starch on the umbilical cord if there is any bleeding. keep this duckling away from others otherwise they will pick at it until it falls off sometimes in a few days or so. i have two babies now a week old worse off than this one and they are both thriving today. good luck

 

[erin272]

Thanks Baylor! Do you put the cornstarch on it if it's just moist looking? It's not bleeding right now. I have him with another weak one that just hatched a little before him. I should add that this duckling may not have been 100% ready as I helped him because he was backwards in the egg and also shrink wrapped. I have been giving him small drops of sugar water to help give him energy is that okay to continue?

 

[Baylor]

go buy the poly vitamin drops in the infant section of your grocery store - minus the iron. It is important they get the nutrients to give them strength. My two were helped as well as they were shrink wrapped and not externally pipped several days late. It is a full week and they are now integrated with the rest. The smallest one is half the size of the others but he keeps up. I pull him out and give him vitamins in the poly drops a few times a day to help him with leg strength. I also kept them on hard boiled eggs a few days longer - with chick starter also - giving them a choice if they wanted to move to starter. They always ate all the eggs 1st. Only use the corn starch if there is blood on the umbilical cord - the rest should dry out and fall off by itself now. Good luck!!!!

 

[erin272]

Great info thanks! He is in with the rest now and you can't even tell anything was wrong with him. He's eating the starter and drinking like crazy.
Now the last duckling that is super late (hatch day was Wednesday and we're on Sunday) I just hatched him out this morning, but he's still attached to the egg with his umbilical cord. Do I just leave him in the incubator attached or do I remove him out to under the heat lamp by himself? Have you unattached the umbilical cord before or do I wait it out until it detaches itself....It's been 12 hours since he came out of the egg but his belly is protruding and the umbilical is still firmly attached to the egg. He keeps peeping and struggling to get up. I'm scared he's going to rip it!

 

[Baylor]

leave him in the incubator it will dry off and detach itself.You will likely see a little blood this is where the corn starch comes in handy! If it is really stuck get some clean warm water and q-tips to pull the goo at least from the inside of the egg then at least the shell is off.

 

[erin272]

Thanks, I did end up removing him from the incubator last night as I was terrified of bacteria - it's pretty disgusting since the first one hatched Wednesday and the yucky stuff has been in that wet environment so long. I left him in there until the umbilical cord looked like most of the blood was gone. I cut it and put cornstarch on it. It did bleed but only a small bit. I thought for sure I was going to lose him - very weak and not even chirping. I dropped sugar water on his bill but he didn't even seem to swallow it. I woke up this morning and he was still alive but still on his back and weak. I managed to get some electrolyte vitamin powder from the store this morning and gave him some in water. Now he has perked up quite a bit and is actually walking (clumsily) but he seems like he might actually make it! He's not eating though...he mouths the duck starter than shakes his head. Maybe by tomorrow he may start to eat. Thanks so much for your advice! I would have never thought about the cornstarch and it did seem to help a lot with drying the cord up.

 

[Baylor]

Cook up some eggs and smash them into small tiny pieces and give him the boiled eggs for food until he gets his strength. Make sure there is Niacin in the vitamins as that is one of the most important things for leg strength. I kept my little guy on boiled eggs for a full week - always leaving starter too just in case he wanted that to eat. He is now eating just starter. Good luck.

 

[Miss Lydia]