What is this rotten yolk?

[Goosebaby]

First time hatching ducklings, the mother killed all of this one’s siblings prior to hatch so I removed this egg and did the rest.

out of all of the eggs I was worried about this one because it looked super gooey late in incubation.

This little one just hatched, is full of energy and pushed its way all the way out. I figured it was unabsorbed yolk because it’s hanging out of the umbilical but it looks rotten.

What is this and what can I do?

 

[MGG]

First time hatching ducklings, the mother killed all of this one’s siblings prior to hatch so I removed this egg and did the rest.

out of all of the eggs I was worried about this one because it looked super gooey late in incubation.

This little one just hatched, is full of energy and pushed its way all the way out. I figured it was unabsorbed yolk because it’s hanging out of the umbilical but it looks rotten.

What is this and what can I do?

That's just embryonic fecal matter. "Baby poop". Usually it gets left in the shell but sometimes it's still attached. Perfectly normal.

 

[Goosebaby]

That's just embryonic fecal matter. "Baby poop". Usually it gets left in the shell but sometimes it's still attached. Perfectly normal.

Aww Thank you so much!!

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

MGG beat me to it. I call it hatching debris, lol. I seem to make up my own words though.

 

[MGG]

Aww Thank you so much!!

No problem! Congrats on your baby!

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Sorry to hear that the other eggs didn't fare as well, but you did a great job saving this duckling. Congratulations!!

That goop does look kind of scary, doesn't it? If you haven't already, you should see the hatching "gunk" that accompanies a gosling hatch...

 

[Goosebaby]

Sorry to hear that the other eggs didn't fare as well, but you did a great job saving this duckling. Congratulations!!

That goop does look kind of scary, doesn't it? If you haven't already, you should see the hatching "gunk" that accompanies a gosling hatch...

I remember some gunk with mine but it was always dried up and stuck on to whatever remained of the shells, I figured it was left over membrane . My geese have always done an excellent job of brooding and hatching and I’ve NEVER had to take over so this is an all new experience!
Geese are so much easier than ducks!

With my ducks I’ve never gotten to the point of incubation because I had my pekins for years who had zero desire to brood and I never bothered to try. Now that I have my welsh, buff, and cayuga, Bee “the welsh” went broody and I decided to let her try.

Her own eggs were infertile, she then brooded Moon’s “the Cayuga.” Bee would do fine with them for a week, then for unknown reasons smash some of them or throw them out. she did this for awhile but I didn’t want to interfere, just letting nature do its thing.

She stopped breaking them and got two to 21ish days at which point she threw one out of the nest for the night and the other she punctured through to the yolk sack probably stomping it like she did the others. The first died, the second died a few days later, probably from infection. I had taken it, patched up the hole, but it didn’t make it.

She started incubating three more of Moon’s eggs. Bee seemed to have wisened up and this round didn’t make any mistakes or try to crush them like before so I let her do her thing. One was a dud, the other made it to hatching. He was buff colored and pipped, zipped, and was just pushing out of the egg. Bee was protective and gentle so I didn’t think she’d do something stupid. I left him with Bee for 2 minutes unattended which was a mistake. She decided after all the time she spent incubating him to go full psycho and smash the egg he was pushing out of and she stomped and smothered him with her foot.

The last egg was a week behind, I took it and I’ve been “mom” since, which hasn’t been easy because this has been a week long crash course in incubating.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

I remember some gunk with mine but it was always dried up and stuck on to whatever remained of the shells, I figured it was left over membrane . My geese have always done an excellent job of brooding and hatching and I’ve NEVER had to take over so this is an all new experience!
Geese are so much easier than ducks!

With my ducks I’ve never gotten to the point of incubation because I had my pekins for years who had zero desire to brood and I never bothered to try. Now that I have my welsh, buff, and cayuga, Bee “the welsh” went broody and I decided to let her try.

Her own eggs were infertile, she then brooded Moon’s “the Cayuga.” Bee would do fine with them for a week, then for unknown reasons smash some of them or throw them out. she did this for awhile but I didn’t want to interfere, just letting nature do its thing.

She stopped breaking them and got two to 21ish days at which point she threw one out of the nest for the night and the other she punctured through to the yolk sack probably stomping it like she did the others. The first died, the second died a few days later, probably from infection. I had taken it, patched up the hole, but it didn’t make it.

She started incubating three more of Moon’s eggs. Bee seemed to have wisened up and this round didn’t make any mistakes or try to crush them like before so I let her do her thing. One was a dud, the other made it to hatching. He was buff colored and pipped, zipped, and was just pushing out of the egg. Bee was protective and gentle so I didn’t think she’d do something stupid. I left him with Bee for 2 minutes unattended which was a mistake. She decided after all the time she spent incubating him to go full psycho and smash the egg he was pushing out of and she stomped and smothered him with her foot.

The last egg was a week behind, I took it and I’ve been “mom” since, which hasn’t been easy because this has been a week long crash course in incubating.

I've rarely let broodies hatch eggs, but did have a couple of Muscovy that tried to co-brood and broke eggs fighting over the nest (finally had to remove one of them). I can only imagine how awful it must have felt to find eggs with viable embryos that have been crushed. You just never know with broodies.

You may be new to artificial incubation, but you knew when to step in and help this duckling out. I hope you find incubating as much fun as I do, too. Enjoy your new little - he just needs a friend now.