broken egg with chick inside

vic's chicks wrote:I have a few eggs under a broody ready to hatch in two days. I just happened to be there when she got off her nest this morning and noticed one that is badly broken. large pieces of shell missing. I can see the baby chick moving and breathing under the dried membrane. Should I try to end its life and how do i do that the most humanely. I am pretty sure nothing can be done to save it.

HigginsRAT wrote:I have heard of people using crazy glue to seal up a cracked egg but this one sounds too far gone for just a crack (sounds shattered). I have never tried the crazy glue a crack thing and doubt I would figure any hatching egg would be so valuable as to warrant extremes like this. But never say never!

I have misted with distilled water, a membrane that has had the shell come away before it should (some eggs feel more raw calcium like, it lacks that shiny glaze like surface, the rough and absorbant shells seem to crater like what you describe, not good!). Concept thinking of why to mist with distilled water; the membrane will dry out, shrink and encase the baby so it cannot move about and hatch properly. This is in artifical incubation moreso than a natural hatch. I expect that the hen will have some humidity off her body to keep the exposed membrane more pliable and moistened than in a forced air incubator.

I would mark this bird if it lives and maybe not use it to breed more from or not allow setty Moms to set on eggs that lack a slippery coating to avoid this maybe in future. Not saying the shell is more porous than others but it could well be why the shell busted...or even not thick enough too? Just some thoughts out there to think about to avoid seeing this happen again...frustrating!

Corn starch or wheat flour will stop some sorts of bleeding in all sorts of birds and animals . I keep a small canning jar with a lid on it in the Buster 'Bator area for just such emergencies. Also if I clip toe nails, and they bleed, dip drippy nail in a sandwich bag (flour or starch) held in the glass jar.

I agree that the membrane around the chick is potentially supplying the occupant with much needed blood supply and it is too early for it to have hatched out on its own as per how you have described the hatching egg looking.

**WARNING**
Potentially ignorant comments, funny to some, disturbing to most...stop reading if offended easily please...
**WARNING**

I find humour helps us when dealing with hiccups with living things we adore and love and want so desperately to LIVE long and happy lives.

We, the caretakers feel responsible for allowing life to form and when things like this rotten incident during a chick hatching comes about, it can hit us to the very soul...so here is a bit of stupid fun in sic type humour for you and I hope I don't offend anyone but you bin warned...

Not sure if I can say this as it sounds way ignorant (but funny...we try SO hard to allow things to live and no matter what, LIVEstock results in DEADstock). So I am feeling very wicked today and will just say it 'cause I have said this before and it's helped lighten the burden of life versus death. Sigh...


After dousing corn starch or flour on a premature hatched chick attempting to stop the oozing blood ... if the said chick don't make it...wait for it...you can always fire up the deep fryer and you are half way done regarding a simple preparation of crispy fried chick fer lunch!


Told you I was being way wicked today...can't help self...it's spring/summer and hatching season is durn near here for us! Yippee....Ya, and a TY YI YO!

OK...enough giddiness....I will promptly go crate myself now.

Tara

uno wrote:If the broken shell has pierced the chick and caused bleeding, that's a bad situation.

If the shell has not pierced the chick or membrane, there is hope.

I would not tear the membrane (sorry Squeetened) because there is lots of blood still running through those membrane veins. The blood does not pull into the chick until that chick is ready to hatch, so the chick can bleed to death if you tear the membrane.

What I would do is put a piece of ductape over the hole, try not to stick it to the chick, and cross your fingers. If there is no goo dripping out of the break, the chick should not get glued into his shell.