First clutch, only one potential baby left

[MantaNoRay]

When can I expect this little dude to hatch…or will it hatch?

April 18, 2024

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Today would be about day 21 for this little fella, and I’m starting to get anxious. It is the last egg of the bunch that has a shot of hatching - one died a few days back about 2 days before it was due to hatch, and another stopped developing early on.

It’s in a small incubator because the parents have eaten two of the dead eggs and I’m afraid of them pecking at this last baby. Temp at 100, trying to keep the humidity up the best I can. I’m done touching it until it hatches; the only reason I touched it today was because I was sure it was dead and I doubled checked before giving up on it. That little flicker of movement made my day!

I’m all prepared for a baby…now I just need the baby!

 

[Zara]

Today would be about day 21 for this little fella,

Is that since laid or since incubation started?

@Mockinbirdiva @Matto @BrianB

 

[BrianB]

Green cheek incubation averages 25 days, but they can hatch anywhere between 22 and 26 days. If the hen didn't incubate consistently, the egg would be delayed in development. It doesn't look ready yet.

It's not unusual for the first and second clutch from a new pair of green cheeks to be a complete disaster. Their instincts just aren't there yet. They mate but don't know what to do with the resulting chicks. They might not incubate properly, destroy the eggs, or kill the chicks. Hand-feeding a green cheek from hatching is difficult at best. I know it sounds harsh, but sometimes it's best to let nature take its course and let them learn from their failures.

 

[MantaNoRay]

Is that since laid or since incubation started?

@Mockinbirdiva @Matto @BrianB

Unsure of lay date - I just looked in the cage one day and saw TWO eggs hidden at the bottom/back. 21 days incubation for sure.

 

[MantaNoRay]

Green cheek incubation averages 25 days, but they can hatch anywhere between 22 and 26 days. If the hen didn't incubate consistently, the egg would be delayed in development. It doesn't look ready yet.

It's not unusual for the first and second clutch from a new pair of green cheeks to be a complete disaster. Their instincts just aren't there yet. They mate but don't know what to do with the resulting chicks. They might not incubate properly, destroy the eggs, or kill the chicks. Hand-feeding a green cheek from hatching is difficult at best. I know it sounds harsh, but sometimes it's best to let nature take its course and let them learn from their failures.

I’ve read that the first clutch is usually not successful, and I’ve definitely seen that with my pair. As the post states, this last egg was confiscated in hopes of one successful hatch. I’ll be attempting to hand feed as I raised one of my birds from the first few days of life, so I’m relatively comfortable in my abilities.

Thing is, I don’t think I want to breed them annually/again…this was more of an ‘oopsie’ clutch (I was told I had two girls, but the one with the more femme name is actually male and the masc name is female, lol). I’ve been so anxious and a bit of a helicopter, so I don’t think I could do this every year.

 

[Zara]

You could invest in some dummy eggs for future years, or just boil the eggs.

Try not to move the eggs too much. You can see there is life in there, but still has some growing to do.

 

[MantaNoRay]

You could invest in some dummy eggs for future years, or just boil the eggs.

Try not to move the eggs too much. You can see there is life in there, but still has some growing to do.

I bought dummy eggs and my hen is sitting on those now!

 

[MantaNoRay]

Big update; I hear peeps!!

 

[MantaNoRay]

Final update: this chick was ready to go, but ultimately got shrink wrapped. So heart broken. It was fully formed and in the right position.

I jinxed it by giving it a name before it hatched, but lesson learned. *If* I were to go through this again, I’d invest in a more substantial incubator with better humidity control.

A friend has a baby (3weeks) black capped conure that I’m going to devote some time to instead. Going to remove any and all nesting material from GCCs cage now.

 

[Zara]

I 'm very sorry

 

[Pixiebeak]

So sorry, that's a heart breaker