When to assist?

[Everose]

Unfortunately two chicks died in their egg shells today after having pipped and they looked completely normal and didn't seem to be having any issues with hatching. When should they be assisted? I have had luck with lots of other hatches and I thought for sure they were fine, and I've always taken a hands off approach to hatching eggs. I've done a few assists and I thought for sure these two wouldn't need help When do you step in?

 

[TOR]

To me that is a very tough question. If I see a chick is pipped done some zipping and stalled out I will help or look into it.
Otherwise they have pipped I have let them do their thing. 2 hatches ago I had couple chickens take 30 to 40 hours. 1 lived the other died. Then I have had them die in the egg. I have helped chicks hatch and had them live then I have had them die, then I feel responsible.
I am getting to a point of doing a more hands off approach. Except of course a stalled chick which started zipping.
I have seen people here say after 24 hours.
Sometimes your darned if you do and darned if you don't.
If I do see a chick which piped into the air cell , but no thru to air I will make a air hole.

If the chick does not make it on its own and dies maybe it is the way it was meant to be.
Sorry I did not give a exact answer.

 

[Everose]

Yeah, I just feel so bad when there's something I could've done. I don't like to step in and do anything, I like to let nature take it's course (but then again I'm using an incubator instead of a mother hen) and i have so much more success that way. It just sucks so bad to see a baby come so far and then not make it. I see so many people step in and end up hurting more than helping, and it's frustrating to be in a situation where the baby looks fine one minute but dies the next. Guess I'll just go ahead and help them a little next time, it can't hurt to help em out once they've zipped

 

[TOR]

Do not know if you have read this I will post the link.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/

 

[Sierra G]

My rule of thumb if you're going to play doctor is "First, do no harm".

Since just opening the incubator can shrink-wrap everything inside that's pipped I don't like to open the incubator for at least two days after the first egg pips, longer when incubating waterfowl. The more eggs you are incubating the more chicks you put at risk when you intervene. And the majority of potential problems can be avoided by monitoringtthe hatch and making sure your eggs are losing enough weight. It's not always going to make things worse if you open the incubator, but there's no reason to interfere with the hatch unless you're certain there's a problem.

If you do decide to go in, don't do it out of ignorance. Read up on hatching and know what to expect. That way you know what's normal. For example, if your chick looks like it's peeping but you can't hear it, it hasn't lost its voice. It's absorbing the yolksac and really, really is not ready to hatch. Just because you think it looks distressed doesn't mean anything is wrong.

If you're sure you know what's wrong and you can do something about it, then you can intervene without opening yourself up to helper's remorse. First, you need to safely open the incubator. That requires that you have a plan for which egg you're going to work with and what you're going to do. Have all your instruments and supplies handy and a worksurface ready before you open the incubator. Whatever instruments you're planning on using, you should practice with them before you use them seriously.

If you can raise the humidity in your incubator without opening it bump it five percent and the take out the one egg you're going to assist. Only work on one at a time. Even an egg in trouble is in less trouble in the incubator than it is cooling outside it. Put the egg on on a padded, stable surface where it can't roll. A warm wet towel is good, a dry towel on a decent sized table or a good amount of floor space works too. I mention the floor as an option because you can't drop it if you're working there. Wherever you're working make sure it's well lighted and well heated.

Fix what you can and return the chick or egg to the incubator. Toss in a wet paper towel too. Let the temperature and humidity stabilize before working with another egg.

 

[Everose]

thank you for the tips! I have assisted hatch before but this time I swore everything was normal. The babies had pipped and zipped and looked good but then they withered away within a few hours. I feel like I should've gone ahead and pulled away that shell, I had been busy so by the time I got back they had already died. I just hate to open the incubator on them when they look totally normal but at least I'll know what to do next time.