Jay Angler

Bonk

1. Approximately how old is this chicken?
2. Does she seem "paralyzed"? If so, Google Merricks disease - if there's *any* chance it's Merricks, keep her isolated as it's contagious.
3. Did these birds get any immunizations?
4. Is there any chance some sort of predator got in there? Poisonous snake, or flying predator. Things like that can shock a bird and warmth and fluids is the treatment, as you've done.

Keeping her warm and quiet is step one. We lost a bird recently to #2 above and it sounds somewhat similar and there's no cure for that, but we've also had birds with strokes, shock or injuries that have recovered amazingly well, so Step Two is to watch and wait.

bolt

Yes - leave hay or straw where the mom can reach it and let her do the "interior decorating"! There was ice on buckets in our field 2 days ago in the morning, and quite possibly there will be again today, so lots of down indicated. In summer here, I'm sometimes worried about the reverse - too hot will easily kill eggs. I will water down around their cubes to keep them cool on our long sunny summer days.

Because I couldn't resist...

Wendy Smith wrote:

The eggs just didn't seemed like they were progressing like they should for it to be 22 days into incubation.

Are you basing that on chicken development? Ducks are way slower - I had some hatch that I was sure were duds and hadn't internally pipped when they should and then all of a sudden I had 3 ducklings.

Hopefully the duckling is just hiding in the center of those arteries and doing just what it should.

OK, first off, are these a Pekin variety duck (Khaki, Indian Runner etc etc.)? If yes, they tend to hatch at 28 days.
The reason ducks/you turn eggs is to stop the duckling from sticking to the membrane. There is some risk that harm came from the short period with the turner off, but there's really no way to tell until you see duckling movement further along.
At this point all you can do is watch and wait.

If they're Muscovy ducklings, they take even longer - 35 days. I've got a mom who insisted on going broody a few days ago and we've had freezing temps this week. She looks like a Princess on a bed of fluff and happy as a can be, but it could be fun if she hatches and it snows!

We can't always control outcomes - try to be patient and plan for the best. Even if you've lost some, it doesn't mean you've lost them all. Keep us posted!

John F Dean wrote:

This person also shared that friends had recently died in a motorcycle wreck.

This is a tough one. As people age, reflexes tend to slow and strength tends to be lost (there are exceptions as always). If a wreck could have been avoided but wasn't due to losses, does that mean the person made the wrong decision? Or does that mean that they died doing something they loved, just as younger people sometimes die in accidents? Do we stop because of that risk, or do we accept fate? Let's just say that a line that seems very fuzzy when a decision is being made, may seem far more distinct in hindsight!
My dad died in 5 days from an undiagnosed condition when he was just 66 years old - he'd been playing badminton and tennis the week before he got sick.
My mom died over 15 years from dementia when she was 90, looking quite unhappy for much of that time. Who got the better deal?

I do consider it wrong when a person's action/decision or lack there of, puts innocent people at risk. But people who stay healthy by staying active and make reasonable choices about giving up rock-climbing in favor of lawn bowling, are wonderful to see and have participating in the community!

for now I’m more concerned about my broody Muscovy as she hardly moves and refuses to get up in fear of loosing another egg.

I hear you!

Not sure if new egg is fertile have to candle within the week

I've had a little practice with that this year, and I suggest you not even try to candle it for 7 days. The more you disturb the egg the greater the chance of a bad outcome, but I often find that Muscovy eggs, being so long to hatch, just don't show anything until 7 days.

Carla Burke wrote:

Jay Angler wrote:A suspect anytime between Miss Broody's original due date and the new egg's due date should be fine. Is the new egg fertile? If you're getting extra ducklings, having them match that duckling's due date would make sense to me.

That's what we tried to do, too. It can take some careful planning, if you're ordering online, lol.

Yes, and then she'll break brood and you end up with bathtub or kitchen floor ducklings - been there, done that - it's *essential* to plan for the possibility!

You have to try *really* hard not to have the ducklings imprint on the "human" which is why I suggested a minimum of 5. With 5 they think they're like each other, but only 1 or 2 and your risk is greater of ending up with "pets", not farm animals. Human imprinted animals can seem like "fun" until they try humping your leg because they think you're a desirable mate.