hatching wood duck eggs

[scott ritter]

I'm new to the site and need help quickly on incubating duck eggs. I incubated 3 abandoned wood duck eggs. 2 have hatched, 1 each of the last 2 days. The last egg has movement inside but no pipping. The air pocket inside has grown to half the size of the egg. I feel that the duckling is running out of resources and is too weak to hatch itself. should I help it out and open up the egg for it? I think I should do something today.

 

[WVduckchick]

Is the air cell drawn down? Has it internally pipped?

Here is a good article on assisted hatching. I would guess wood duck eggs are similar to hatching call ducks, which often need assistance.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/

 

[scott ritter]

thanks for your reply. I started reading that article and I think it has internally pipped. I put made a small air hole at the top.

 

[WVduckchick]

I'd say that's a safe move. Depending on how long the original duck incubated the eggs, they could each be a day apart, so try not to rush it. Its very cool that 2 have hatched. Hope you'll post pics when you get a chance.

 

[scott ritter]

I also peeled back about 1/3 of the shell and exposed the inner membrane. There are still veins showing so it's back in the incubator. I think it's legs are over it's head. The only thing I can make out for sure is it's beak which is sticking through the only small hole in the inner membrane. Not much movement, just moves it's beak every few minutes.

 

[WVduckchick]

Awesome. Have you done any hatching at all, or is this a first?

 

[scott ritter]

1st time. Exciting but very stressful. On the job training. The duckling in the incubator seems to be moving a little more. Still showing some veins and a little yolk. The 2 seem to be doing good. I haven't seen them eat on their own but my daughter has. I let them play in the water for 5 minutes today and they drank plenty of water. Every time I check on them they are resting between the food and water, so I guess that's a good sign. Thank you for the link, it has a lot of good information. I will post pictures soon.

 

[WVduckchick]

Ducks take their own sweet time hatching. I’m not sure about wood ducks specifically, but i have call ducks. The one that is still working on hatching, watch for it to make a motion like yawning or chewing. That means it’s still absorbing the yolk, so just don’t rush it. Keep any exposed membrane moist with Vaseline or coconut oil or similar, hopefully it will start wiggling out soon!

 

[scott ritter]

Thank you. I was going to ask about keeping the membrane moist. I've been putting coconut oil on it. I haven't seen a yawn but moves it's beak some which may be chewing. It also starts chirping every so often.

 

[scott ritter]

The little guy is still struggling to survive. The yolk sac isn't fully absorbed. I've been giving him drops of water, trying to keep him hydrated. Very weak though. The yolk sac doesn't seem to have changed throughout the day. Any thoughts or advice?