Our hens Dottie and Blackie have been sitting on their group of eggs for 21 days and on schedule an egg under Blackie began to hatch. It was a blue egg from our Ameraucana hen. It didn't take it too long before it hatched and shortly after that a light brown egg from one of our Buff Orpingtons hatched.
After holding the two silent eggs from under Blackie up to a flashlight in a dark room I determined they were not going to hatch. Then on Friday morning I noticed a dark brown egg from under Dottie began to hatch. I believe this egg is from our Black Australorp. After getting a small hole in the shell and the membrane it didn't seem to make much progress for about 24 hours and the membrane seemed to be drying out a bit. The other 3 eggs from under Dottie didn't seem to be viable after holding them up to a flashlight so I tossed them. I moved this egg under Blackie so that it wouldn't be alone and after about 2 days with the chick inside still working hard and chirping loudly I decided it needed some help.
After a lot of online research I knew we needed to keep the membrane moist to avoid it sticking to the chick. Wetting a cotton ball and moistening the membrane I held the egg as Tim chipped away at the shell and membrane with tweezers. It was so amazing to see the chick finally freed and stretch from it's tiny cramped ball. I immediately took it back to the coop to place it back under Blackie but she and the chicks were wondering around the coop and she flipped out when I placed the chirping wet chick in her nest. She approached it as if it were a predator. We quickly placed it inside under a heat lamp. It was distressed to be alone so Tim took it back to the coop where Blackie and the chicks were nesting, he placed it under Blackie and she accepted it immediately.
Here is the last little chick to hatch a day after hatching after she's dried and fluffed out.
Now they seem to all be happily getting along and Blackie has turned out to be a wonderful mama.
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